Quantitative anatomy of the lumbar musculature

Abstract

This paper describes the anatomy of the musculature crossing the lumbar spine in a standardized form to provide data generally suitable for static biomechanical analyses of muscle and spinal forces. The muscular anatomy from several sources was quantified and transformed to the mean bony anatomy of four young healthy adults measured from standing stereo-radiographs. The origins, insertions and physiological cross-sectional area (PCSA) of 180 muscle slips which act on the lumbar spine are given relative to the bony anatomy defined by the locations of 12 thoracic and five lumbar vertebrae, and the sacrum, and the shape and positions of the 24 ribs. The broad oblique abdominal muscles are each represented by six vectors and an appropriate proportion of the total PCSA was assigned to each to represent the muscle biomechanics.