Influence of lumbar spine motion constraint on lower extremity joint range-of-motion used during lifting

A descriptive kinematic analysis was performed to compare stance width, foot orientation, and sagittal angle of the ankle, knee, hip and trunk between self-selected and a spine motion- constrained lifting technique. When lumbar spine motion was constrained, hip flexion, knee flexion and ankle dorsiflexion increased while trunk angle decreased in comparison to unconstrained lifting. The results suggest that lower extremity range-of-motion capacity should be considered as a potentially modifiable personal characteristic that influences the amount of lumbar spine motion used when lifting.