Article

Acromegaly is a chronic debilitating disease that presents with multiple systemic
manifestations, including changes in body composition, joint abnormalities,
muscular impairment and visual disturbances. This study aimed to assess posture
and body balance in acromegalic patients and to establish the correlation between
these measures. Twenty-eight acromegalic patients and a similar number of control
subjects matched for sex, age, weight, height and body mass index underwent
postural evaluation using the photogrammetry and measurement of balance using the
stabilometry in two tasks: feet apart, eyes open and feet together, eyes closed.
In comparison with the control group, the acromegalic group presented postural
deviations in lateral views in the vertical alignment of the trunk (P=0.001 for
the right side and P=0.021 for the left), the hip angle (P=0001 for the right
side and P=0.016 for the left side) and horizontal alignment of the pelvis
(P=0.017 for the right and P<0.001 for the left side). Compared with healthy
subjects, the acromegalic patients presented displacement of the centre of
pressure in both the anterior-posterior direction and the medial-lateral
direction in both evaluated tasks. We observed significant correlations between
balance measures and the following posture evaluation variables: distance between
the lower limbs, horizontal alignment of the head and vertical alignment of the
head. Our results suggest that posture and balance need to be evaluated for
acromegalic patients in clinical practice, as there are significant postural
imbalances and deviations in these patients.
CI - Copyright (c) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS