Intervertebral Disc Cell Death Is Dependent on the Magnitude and Duration of Spinal Loading

Abstract

The results of this study demonstrate the feasibility of developing a quantitative correlation between spinal loading and disc degeneration. Such a correlation may be coupled in the future to existing engineering models that predict spinal loading in response to physical exposures and lead to improved definition of the bounds of healthy and unhealthy spinal loading, and ultimately, refined guidelines for low back safety.