Sagittal radiographic measurements of the cervical and lumbar vertebrae in normal adults.

Lateral radiographs of 157 healthy adult males have been measured to obtain geometrical dimensions of cervical and lumbar vertebrae. Measurements were based on five bony landmarks which can be easily defined in radiographs. The measurements enable the determination of 11 dimensions that are used for anthropometric evaluations of the human vertebrae. We found the cervical vertebrae increasing slightly in width from C3 to C7, while the width of the lumbar vertebrae remained almost constant. The width and height of lumbar vertebrae were approximately twice those of the cervical ones.