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Aim: To evaluate the potential risk factors for neck and shoulder pain among schoolchildren. Methods: Demographic, physical/leisure activity, school-related and psychosocial factors for neck/shoulder pain were evaluated in a crosssectional study of 1611 schoolchildren aged 11-14 years. Results: Neck and shoulder complaints were reported in 27.9 and 19.0% of the sample, respectively. According to multivariate logistic regression models, high desk height (odds ratio (OR) = 2.23, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.22-4.07), forward-inclined seat pan (OR = 2.38, 95% CI: 1.40-4.05), time spent (30-60 min/day) carrying school bag (OR = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.16-2.23) and psychosocial factors (OR = 1.95, 95% CI: 1.03-3.72) independently increased the risk of neck pain, while low body mass index (OR = 0.63, 95% CI: 0.42-0.95) decreased it. Time spent on watching TV (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.02-2.06), backward-inclined seat backrest (OR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.02-2.58), curved seat backrest (OR = 1.80, 95% CI: 1.05-3.08), too much homework (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.03-2.03) and psychosocial factors (conduct problems) (OR = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.07-2.46) independently increased the risk of shoulder pain, while prosocial behaviour (OR = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.35-0.90) decreased it. Conclusion: Both physical and psychosocial factors influenced the risk for neck/shoulder pain in school-aged children, suggesting that they should be considered in assessment and treatment of such symptoms in this population.Key words: classroom furniture; Iran; musculoskeletal; psychological; school bag; schoolchildren.What is already known on this topic 1 Neck or shoulder complaints are fairly common among school children and adolescents, but their risk factors are controversial or not well-established due to limited research in this area. What this paper adds1 School-related (e.g. classroom furniture, homework and time spent carrying school bag) and psychosocial factors were found to affect the risk of neck/shoulder complaints, but physical activity, having a job, using a computer or playing games and school bag weight had no effect.Recent studies have shown that neck or shoulder complaints are fairly common among school children and adolescents. 1-5 According to the literature, the reported incidence of neck and shoulder pain in children and adolescents ranges from 11 to 45%. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] There is evidence that the presence of musculoskeletal pain (including neck/shoulder pain) in childhood and adolescence can be an important factor for the occurrence of these pains in adulthood. 3,8,9 Thus, a better understanding of the risk factors associated with these pains among children and adolescents has the potential for a notable impact on the future workforce. To prevent pain, it is crucial to understand the factors that contribute to neck and shoulder pain in children and adolescents.However, a review of the literature indicates that unlike studies on low back pain, few studies have evaluated neck and shoulder pain in school-aged children.2,4,10 In addition, most of the exi...

Background: Most available data on the prevalence and characteristics of back pain in schoolchildren is related to industrialised and developed countries. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of low back pain (LBP) and potential risk factors among schoolchildren and adolescents in a developing country, Iran.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1611 Iranian schoolchildren aged 11–14 years. A self-complete questionnaire was used to assess LBP prevalence, physical leisure activities, school-related and psychosocial factors.Results: The prevalence of LBP was 34.3%. Female gender (odds ratio [OR] = 1.57, 95% CI:1.28–1.94), family member with back pain (OR = 1.82, 95% CI: 1.40–2.36), difficulty in viewing the (black)board (OR = 1.50, 95% CI: 1.13–1.99), too much homework (OR = 1.47, 95% CI:1.09–1.99), time spend carrying a schoolbag (min/d) (OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.01–1.85), and psychosocial factors (emotional symptoms) (OR = 2.28, 95% CI: 1.54–3.39) were independently associated with LBP. Physical activity, having a job, watching television, using a computer, playing games and schoolbag weight had no effect.Conclusion: It can be concluded that both physical and psychosocial factors influenced the risk for LBP, but emotional symptoms had a stronger association with LBP than physical factors. Knowledge about LBP in school children and adolescents could be important in assessment and treatment of such symptoms in this population.

BackgroundTo investigate the combinations of Musculoskeletal pain (MSP) (neck, shoulder, upper and low back pain) among a sample of Iranian school children.MethodsThe MSP combinations was modeled by latent class analysis (LCA) to find the clusters of high–risk individuals and multigroup LCA taking into account the gender and age (≤ 13 years and ≥ 14 years of age categories).ResultsThe lowest and highest prevalence of MSP was 14.2% (shoulder pain in boys aged ≥14 years) and 40.4% (low back pain in boys aged ≤13 years), respectively. The likelihood of synchronized neck and low back pain (9.4–17.7%) was highest, while synchronized shoulder and upper back pain (4.5–9.4%) had the lowest probability. The probability of pain at three and four locations was significantly lower in boys aged ≥14 years than in other gender–age categories. The LCA divided the children into minor, moderate, and major pain classes. The likelihood of shoulder and upper back pain in the major pain class was higher in boys than in girls, while the likelihood of neck pain in the moderate pain class and low back pain in the major pain class were higher in children aged ≥14 years than those aged ≤13 years. Gender–age specific clustering indicated a higher likelihood of experiencing major pain in children aged ≤13 years.ConclusionsThe findings highlight the importance of gender– and age–specific data for a more detailed understanding of the MSP combinations in children and adolescents, and identifying high-risk clusters in this regard.

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