Abstract
Spinal surgery continues to expand its horizons to care for disabled patients presenting
pain and deformities. Over the past decade, our knowledge of spinal alignment, from
the skull to the pelvis, has increased considerably. Such knowledge must expand to
reach general orthopedists and improve the care required for so many people.
Global spinal alignment is a critical concept in understanding the impact of pathological
conditions (degenerative diseases, traumas, deformities) and their treatment, including
spinal instrumentation and arthrodesis. Therefore, the treatment of any spinal disease
must include the knowledge of the complexity of the spinopelvic alignment.
At first, all parameters seem like pure mathematics, hardly applicable to the everyday
life of the inattentive reader. However, it gradually becomes clear that, like everything
else in orthopedics, biomechanics is an essential part of the knowledge of the musculoskeletal
system, revealing the logic behind the physiology of movements.
The knowledge of the sagittal alignment concepts and spinopelvic parameteres provide
a better comprehension of the axial and appendicular skeletons, increasing the understanding
of the physiological and adaptive spinal processes in the face of the degenerative
process that increases throughout life.
Keywords
spine/surgery - spinopelvic parameters - spinal fusion - sagittal alignment
