Summary
An animal study was carried out to gain better understanding on the effect of erect posture in the development of the lumbosacral junction. Rhesus monkeys which are able to sit in an upright position were compared with quadrupeds, including rats, rabbits and dogs, whose lumbosacral spines are normally more or less horizontal. The important finding was the presence of the iliolumbar ligament in the rhesus monkey which attached to the last, occasionally the second last, lumbar transverse process and the adjacent iliac wing. A similar ligament was absent in the quadrupeds. We postulate that the stresses created across the lumbosacral junction as a result of the erect posture in the rhesus monkey have played an important role in stimulating the formation of this ligament.
Résumé
Une étude sur l'animal a été entreprise pour préciser les effets de la posture verticale sur le développement de la jonction lombo-sacrée. Des singes rhésus, qui sont capables de s'asseoir en position verticale, ont été comparés avec des quadrupèdes (rats, lapins, chiens) dont la colonne lombo-sacrée est plus ou moins horizontale. Ce travail a permis de mettre en évidence un fait important qui est la présence d'un ligament ilio-lombaire chez le singe rhésus provenant de l'apophyse transverse de la dernière et éventuellement de l'avant-dernière vertèbre lombaire et allant jusqu'à l'aile iliaque. Ce ligament est absent chez les quadrupèdes. Les auteurs en ont déduit que le développement de cette formation ligamentaire est en grande partie liée aux contraintes que supporte la colonne lombosacrée dans la position verticale.
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Pun, W.K., Luk, K.D.K. & Leong, J.C.Y. Influence of the erect posture on the development of the lumbosacral region. Surg Radiol Anat 9, 69–73 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02116856
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02116856