The effects of smoking on intersegmental motion in the upper thoracic spine☆

Abstract 

Objective

The aim of this study was to determine if smoking has an effect on intersegmental motion in the upper thoracic spine.

Methods

Fifty participants (25 smokers and 25 nonsmokers) who met the inclusion criteria were enrolled into the study. Both groups were scanned by the ProAdjuster (Pittsburg, PA) system 3 times for 3 days in the upper thoracic spine to determine the fixation, mobility, frequency, and motoricity of each segment.

Results

The results revealed an overall higher rate of fixation in both the smoker and nonsmoker groups at all 3 vertebral levels. However, there was a higher rate of fixation within the smoker group than the nonsmoker group (P < .05). The results showed that participants who smoked had a higher fixation rate, which is energy needed to overcome inertia in the T1 spinal region. The mobility was higher in the nonsmoking group (P < .05). Frequency and motoricity showed no significant differences between the 2 groups (P > .05).

Conclusion

According to the data that have been compiled, there is significantly greater fixation in the smoking participants at T1/T2 and T2/T3 spinal regions when compared with the nonsmoking participants, although both groups had a higher-than-normal fixation rate. The nonsmoking participants demonstrated higher mobility compared with the smoking group.

Key indexing terms: Chiropractic, Smoking