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Purpose: Vertebral dimensions may constitute a potential risk factor for degenerative changes in the spine. Previous studies have found a positive association between vertebral height and both type 2 Modic changes and intervertebral disc height loss. Also, vertebral endplate size has been associated with disc degeneration. However, only a few studies have investigated the association between vertebral dimensions and lumbar disc displacement (LDD). This study aimed to investigate the association between vertebral cross-sectional area (CSA) and LDD among the general middle-aged Finnish population. We hypothesized that larger vertebral CSA is associated with LDD., Materials and Methods: The study was conducted by using data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966). At the age of 46, a subpopulation of NFBC1966 underwent clinical examinations including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (n = 1249). MRI scans were used to measure L4 CSA and evaluate the presence of LDD (bulge, protrusion, and extrusion/sequestration) in the adjacent discs. The association between L4 CSA and LDD was analysed using logistic regression, with adjustment for sex, education, body mass index, leisure-time physical activity, smoking, diet, and L4 height., Results: Larger L4 CSA was associated with LDD; an increase of 1 cm 2 in vertebral CSA elevated the odds of LDD relative to no LDD by 10% (adjusted odds ratio 1.10, 95% CI 1.01-1.19). The association was similar among either sex., Conclusions: Larger L4 vertebral CSA was associated with LDD in our study sample. Even though smaller vertebral size exposes our vertebrae to osteoporotic fractures, it simultaneously seems to protect us from LDD., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The vertebral cross-sectional area (CSA) has an independent effect on vertebral strength. Recent evidence has shown that vertebral dimensions significantly increase in the third decade of life, and that lifestyle factors such as body size and composition are clearly associated with vertebral CSA. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that general anthropometric traits (stature, total body mass, lean body mass, fat mass, body mass index, waist circumference), each objectively measured at baseline, predict the change in vertebral CSA over the subsequent decade. A representative sample of young Northern Finnish adults was used (n = 371) with repeated magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans from ~20 and ~30 years (baseline and follow-up, respectively). Vertebral CSA was measured from the MRI scans with high reliability and low measurement error. The statistical analysis was performed using linear regression models adjusted for sex and exact length of MRI interval. According to the regression models, in descending order of effect size, lean body mass (standardized beta coefficient 0.243 [95% confidence interval 0.065-0.420]), total body mass (0.158 [0.043-0.273]), body mass index (0.125 [0.026-0.224]), waist circumference (0.119 [0.010-0.228]), and fat mass (0.104 [0.004-0.205]) were positively and significantly associated with CSA gain over the follow-up, whereas stature (0.079 [-0.066-0.224]) was not associated with CSA change. The results of this study suggest that anthropometric indices may be used for estimating subsequent change in vertebral size. In particular, greater lean body mass seems to be beneficial for vertebral size and thus potentially also for vertebral strength. Future studies should aim to replicate these associations in a dataset with longitudinal anthropometric trajectories and identify the potential common factors that influence both anthropometric traits and vertebral CSA gain., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Anatomical stature estimation methods reconstruct stature for skeletal specimens by adding up the heights of skeletal elements contributing to stature. In addition, these estimations factor in a certain amount of soft tissue known as "soft tissue correction". Our study focuses on the relationship between living stature and one of the major soft tissue contributors to stature: the intervertebral disc thickness/height. The purpose of this study was to clarify whether intervertebral disc thickness is greater in tall individuals and whether there is a linear correlation between stature and intervertebral disc height. To conduct this study, we utilized a subsample of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort of 1966 (n = 12,058) with known stature. We measured vertebral heights and intervertebral disc heights from low back MRI examination performed at the age of 46 years (n = 200). All subjects were considered healthy with no spinal injuries or pathologies. Our results clearly indicate that stature and intervertebral disc height have positive, statistically significant association. According to our results it is advisable to take into account the individual's skeletal height when soft tissue corrections for anatomical stature estimations are performed. Further studies utilizing full body MRI are needed to produce more accurate soft tissue corrections.

Several studies have demonstrated age-related changes in vertebral dimensions. Vertebral size has been reported to increase among elderly adults, with periosteal apposition resulting in increased cross-sectional area (CSA) of the vertebral corpus combined with reduction in bone mineral density. These changes in CSA are observed to be sex-specific, as the pronounced increase of vertebral CSA is found only in elderly males. However, the reduction in bone mineral density in old age is apparent within both sexes. It is thus hypothesized that higher fracture risk in elderly women is a result of their incapacity to increase vertebral size and thus adapt to bone mineral reduction. In this study, our aim was to explore whether the onset of these changes could be ascribed to specific age intervals and whether the proposed differences between the sexes are as great as previously suggested. To conduct this study we utilized two large early 20th century skeletal collections known as Terry and Bass (n = 181). We also utilized data from two lumbar spine magnetic resonance imaging samples as a modern-day reference (n = 497). Age, sex and ethnicity of all individuals were known. Vertebral CSA was determined by measuring three width and length dimensions from the corpus of the fourth lumbar vertebra (L4). Our results indicate only a moderate association between age and vertebral CSA. This association was observed to be relatively similar in both sexes, and we thus conclude that there is no clear sex-specific compensatory mechanism for age-related bone loss in vertebral size., (© 2015 Anatomical Society.)

Human lumbar vertebrae support the weight of the upper body. Loads lifted and carried by the upper extremities cause significant loading stress to the vertebral bodies. It is well established that trauma-induced vertebral fractures are common especially among elderly people. The aim of this study was to investigate the morphological factors that could have affected the prevalence of trauma-related vertebral fractures from medieval times to the present day. To determine if morphological differences existed in the size and shape of the vertebral body between medieval times and the present day, the vertebral body size and shape was measured from the 4th lumbar vertebra using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and standard osteometric calipers. The modern samples consisted of modern Finns and the medieval samples were from archaeological collections in Sweden and Britain. The results show that the shape and size of the 4th lumbar vertebra has changed significantly from medieval times in a way that markedly affects the biomechanical characteristics of the lumbar vertebral column. These changes may have influenced the incidence of trauma- induced spinal fractures in modern populations.