Low back pain prevention’s effects in schoolchildren. What is the evidence?
Open Access
- 1 December 2004
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in European Spine Journal
- Vol. 13 (8), 663-679
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-004-0749-6
Abstract
Given the high prevalence rates of back pain, as early as in childhood, there has been a call for early preventive interventions. To determine which interventions are used to prevent back problems in schoolchildren, as well as what the evidence is for their utility, the literature was searched to locate all investigations that used subjects under the age of 18 and not seeking treatment. Included investigations were specifically designed as an intervention for low back pain (LBP) prevention. Additionally, a literature search was performed for modifiable risk factors for LBP in schoolchildren. The literature-update search was performed within the scope of the "COST Action B13" of the European Commission, approved for the development of European guidelines for the management of LBP. It was concluded that intervention studies in schoolchildren focusing on back-pain prevention are promising but too limited to formulate evidence-based guidelines. On the other hand, since the literature shows that back-pain reports about schoolchildren are mainly associated with psychosocial factors, the scope for LBP prevention in schoolchildren may be limited. However, schoolchildren are receptive to back-care-related knowledge and postural habits, which may play a preventive role for back pain in adulthood. Further studies with a follow-up into adulthood are needed to evaluate the long-term effect of early interventions and the possible detrimental effect of spinal loading at young age.Keywords
This publication has 77 references indexed in Scilit:
- A 2-year prospective longitudinal study on low back pain in primary school childrenEuropean Spine Journal, 2002
- Psychosocial correlates of low-back pain in adolescentsEuropean Spine Journal, 2002
- Backpack Use in ChildrenPediatric Physical Therapy, 2002
- Oral presentationsActa Orthopaedica, 2002
- Spine: posture, mobility and pain. A longitudinal study from childhood to adolescenceEuropean Spine Journal, 2001
- Risk factors for low back pain in a cohort of 1389 Danish school children: an epidemiologic studyEuropean Spine Journal, 1999
- Low back pain in a population of school childrenEuropean Spine Journal, 1999
- Non-specific low back pain in children and adolescents: risk factorsEuropean Spine Journal, 1999
- Why the back of the child?European Spine Journal, 1999
- Kreuzbandverletzung mit Kniegelenkserguß - weshalb ist das Lachman-Zeichen nicht auslösbar?Zeitschrift Fur Orthopadie Und Ihre Grenzgebiete, 1996