Comparison of Postural Alignment of Osteopenic and Osteoporotic Women With Healthy Menopausal

Menopause in women causes problems, including osteoporosis due to hormonal changes. Besides, osteoporosis in postmenopausal women may be associated with musculoskeletal disorders followed by changes in the alignment of the body, especially the spine. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the posture of osteopenic, osteoporotic, and healthy menopausal women.

This was a cross-sectional study conducted on postmenopausal women (age range, 45-65 years) referred to the Endocrinology and Rheumatology Clinic of Guilan University of Medical Sciences. Using the purposive sampling method, 90 people were selected as the study sample from this population and divided into three groups of 30 people: osteopenic, osteoporotic, and healthy. Then, the three groups were evaluated for body alignment (forward head, unequal shoulder, rounded shoulder, kyphosis, lordosis, and lower limb alignment). The obtained data were analyzed using ANOVA and the Scheffe Post Hoc test at the significance level of 0.05, in SPSS v. 22.

The osteopenic and osteoporotic menopausal women significantly differed from the healthy menopause women in the following measures: forward head angle, curved neck angle, unequal shoulder (P=0.003), kyphosis, lordosis, varus knee, flat foot (P=0.006), and pelvic tilt (P=0.001).

According to the results, the decrease in bone density at the osteopenic and osteoporotic levels can affect the postural alignment of the head, shoulders, and neck and the curvature of the spine in postmenopausal women in the three study groups. Therefore, more attention should be paid to the postural evaluation and screening of people prone to osteoporosis, to provide preventive training programs and exercises to improve their physical condition.