Prevalence of Low Back Pain among School-Aged Children between 10 and 12 Years

Josep Vidal-Conti, Pere A Borràs, Pere Palou and Adrià Muntaner-Mas
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Josep Vidal-Conti: Physical Activity and Sports Research Group (GICAFE), University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain
Pere A Borràs: Physical Activity and Sports Research Group (GICAFE), University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain
Pere Palou: Physical Activity and Sports Research Group (GICAFE), University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain
Adrià Muntaner-Mas: Physical Activity and Sports Research Group (GICAFE), University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 21, 1-8

Abstract: Low back pain (LBP) is one of the biggest health problems worldwide that often begins during childhood. The existence of a previous episode of LBP is a premonitory sign of future back pain problems, therefore, prevention among youth will be essential. The main objective of the study was to determine the lifetime, point, and 7-day prevalence of LBP in children. This cross-sectional study evaluated 849 participants (47.1 boys and 52.9% girls) aged 10–12 from 10 primary schools using a self-administered questionnaire. The results demonstrated a lifetime prevalence of LBP of 73.6%, a last 7-days prevalence of 21.2%, and a point prevalence of 9.66%. LBP intensity reported in a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was 3.37 (SD 2.02). Chi-square analysis identified a significant difference between boys and girls in LBP lifetime prevalence ( p < 0.001), 7-day prevalence ( p = 0.035), and point prevalence ( p = 0.014). The Student’s t-test in pain intensity showed the same differences ( p = 0.007). Studies on LBP prevalence in young primary school students are scarce. Therefore, future studies investigating the prevention of LBP should focus on school interventions since schools are the most suitable institutions to participate in back pain prevention and health promotion.

Keywords: schoolchildren; low back pain; health promotion; primary school (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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