CORRELATION ANALYSIS OF DIFFERENT PELVIC TILT DEFINITIONS: A PRELIMINARY STUDY

Abstract

Pelvic tilt (PT) is always described as the pelvic orientation along the transverse axis, yet four PT definitions were established based on different radiographic landmarks: anterior pelvic plane (PTa), the centres of femoral heads and sacral plate (PTm), pelvic outlet (PTh), and sacral slope (SS). These landmarks quantify a similar concept, yet understanding of their relationships is lacking. Some studies referred to the words “pelvic tilt” for horizontal comparisons, but their PT definitions might differ. There is a demand for understanding their correlations and differences for education and research purposes.This study recruited 105 sagittal pelvic radiographs (68 males and 37 females) from a single clinic awaiting their hip surgeries. Hip hardware and spine pathologies were examined for sub-group analysis. Two observers annotated four PTs in a gender-dependent manner and repeated it after six months. The linear regression model and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were applied with a 95% significance interval.The SS showed significant gender differences and the lowest correlations to the other parameters in the male group (−0.3< r <0.2). The correlations of SS in scoliosis (n = 7) and hip implant (female, n = 18) groups were statistically different, yet the sample sizes were too small. PTm demonstrated very strong correlation to PTh (r > 0.9) under the linear model PTm = 0.951 × PTh - 68.284.The PTm and PTh are interchangeable under a simple linear regression model, which enables study comparisons between them. In the male group, SS is more of a personalised spinal landmark independent of the pelvic anatomy. Female patients with hip implant may have more static spinopelvic relationships following a certain pattern, yet a deeper study using a larger dataset is required. The understanding of different PTs improves anatomical education.