Quantification and prevalence of back pain in relation to school transport of material

Abstract

Back pain is one of the public health issues that most affects citizens' quality of life and the economy of post-industrial societies. Its appearance in infancy predisposes suffering as an adult. The objective is to quantify the prevalence of back pain in school children.

A study in the province of Jaén, with a sample selected by natural groups, formed by 153 students, belonging to the third cycle of primary education (n=30), and of the first (n=59) and second cycles (n=64) of compulsory secondary education. The data were obtained with the questionnaire for the quantification of back pain. The prevalence of back pain in the investigated cycles is 79.70%, with a mean and standard deviation of (2.66 + 1.78), reaching a range of mild pain. We found that back pain correlates with the transport time of school supplies (r=0.293; p<0.001), and we found higher levels of back pain in the first cycle of compulsory secondary education (2.67 + 1.59; p<0.001) and in females (2.96 + 1.71; p<0.05) and when the school bag is used to transport their school materials (2.83 + 1.77; p<0.01).

The results favour the design and implementation of multidisciplinary intervention programs to reduce the prevalence of back pain in our schools.