Axial loading

Axial loading is defined as applying a force on a structure directly along a given axis of said structure.^[1] In the medical field, the term refers to the application of weight or force along the course of the long axis of the body.^[2] The application of an axial load on the human spine can result in vertebral compression fractures.^[3] Axial loading takes place during the practice of head-carrying, an activity which a prospective case–control study in 2020 shows leads to "accelerated degenerative changes, which involve the upper cervical spine more than the lower cervical spine and predisposes it to injury at a lower threshold."^[4]