Assessing the biomechanics of scheuermann’s kyphosis affected thoracolumbar spine in forward flexion at the tissue-level using a finite element model

作者：Chunli Wan, Xiaowen Shen, Xuan Wu, Yu Cui, Yi Shao, Ruiping Zhang, Jiao Shang, Jianan Li, Yuting Zhang, Yongqiang Li · 发表于：Scientific Reports · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1038/s41598-025-12968-7 · 被引用次数：4 · 研究领域：Scoliosis diagnosis and treatment、Spinal Fractures and Fixation Techniques、Spine and Intervertebral Disc Pathology

Thoracolumbar kyphosis (TLK) secondary to Scheuermann's disease often leads to low back pain, which may be related to altered biomechanical properties of the spine. However, There is a lack of biomechanical studies in the literature that comprehensively evaluate tissue-level stresses and strains in the thoracolumbar spine affected by Scheuermann's kyphosis, particularly during functional motions such as forward flexion. This study analyzed biomechanical changes during forward flexion in TLK patients using musculoskeletal dynamics and finite element modeling. Twenty TLK patients and twenty healthy individuals were recruited. Kinematic data (joint angles), kinetic data (joint reaction forces and moments), and electromyographic (EMG) data were collected at different bending angles using Vicon 3D motion capture and surface electromyography. Physiologic motions captured from in vivo experiment was simulated using OpenSim, with inverse dynamics and optimization used to calculate vertebral joint angles, muscle forces, and intervertebral reaction forces, serving as boundary conditions for ANSYS finite element models. Subject-specific finite element models for both groups were constructed in ANSYS using computed tomography (CT) DICOM files. The CT-based finite element models were used to compute von Mises stress distributions-a mechanical parameter indicating combined tissue stress and potential risk of overload-in the vertebral body, intervertebral discs, and articular cartilage at d...