Results of these studies indicate that school-based spinal health interventions may be effective in increasing spinal care knowledge and decreasing the prevalence of spinal pain .
However , overall the evidence is inconclusive regarding spinal care behaviors .
The poor quality of the review ed studies limits the conclusions that can be made regarding the effectiveness of school-based spinal health interventions
OBJECTIVES To establish the effectiveness of  school-based spinal health interventions  in terms of : 1 ) improving knowledge about the spine/spinal care ; 2 ) changing spinal care behaviors ; and 3 ) decreasing the prevalence of spinal pain .
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Spinal pain is a significant problem in children and adolescents that has been addressed through school-based spinal health interventions .
No systematic review has been carried out on this topic to date .
Nonspecific back pain in children. A search for associated factors in 14-year-old schoolchildren.
BACKGROUND Nonspecific back pain in children is nearly as common as in adults but is associated with a number of age-specific risk factors including female gender , a family history of low back pain , a high level of physical activity , and prolonged sitting . OBJECTIVE To investigate potential school-related risk factors for back pain in children , most notably schoolbag weight expressed as a percentage of body weight ( relative schoolbag weight ) , whether the schoolbag is carried by h and or by a shoulder harness , how the child travels to and from school , and sitting positions . PATIENTS AND METHODS 123 eighth- grade rs , 58 girls and 65 boys , with a mean age of 14 + /- 0.6 years , completed an anonymous self- question naire during a school day involving six hours of classes . Their schoolbag was weighed on the same day . RESULTS Most respondents traveled to and from school in a vehicle ( 70 % ) , made one trip in each direction each day ( 75 % ) , and carried their schoolbag by the shoulder harness ( 92 % ) . The prevalence of back pain on the study day was 27.6 % , whereas the cumulative prevalence for the last 12 months was 82.9 % with 16.3 % of respondents reporting a single episode of pain , 57.7 % recurrent pain , and 8.9 % chronic pain . A need for a physician visit for back pain was reported in 18.7 % of cases , and 14.6 % of respondents had missed school and /or sporting activities because of back pain . Female gender was associated with current back pain ( odds ratio [ OR ] , 2.7 ; 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] , 1.2 - 6.1 ) . A relative schoolbag weight of 20 % or more was associated with a history of back pain ( OR , 3.1 ; 95 % CI , 1.0 - 9.2 ) , and this effect was larger in children who traveled to and from school on foot and in those who carried their schoolbag in their h and . Sitting on the edge of the chair while completing the question naire was significantly associated with a history of a physician visit for back pain ( OR , 3.1 ; 95 % CI , 1.0 - 9.5 ) . Neither h and edness nor the position of the question naire on the table were significantly associated with back pain in our study population . CONCLUSIONS The findings from this cross-sectional study indicate a need for a longitudinal prospect i ve study design ed to identify etiologic and prognostic factors of back pain in adolescents , with the goal of devising preventive strategies likely to reduce the risk of low back pain in adulthood
Results of these studies indicate that school-based spinal health interventions may be effective in increasing spinal care knowledge and decreasing the prevalence of spinal pain .
However , overall the evidence is inconclusive regarding spinal care behaviors .
The poor quality of the review ed studies limits the conclusions that can be made regarding the effectiveness of school-based spinal health interventions
OBJECTIVES To establish the effectiveness of  school-based spinal health interventions  in terms of : 1 ) improving knowledge about the spine/spinal care ; 2 ) changing spinal care behaviors ; and 3 ) decreasing the prevalence of spinal pain .
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Spinal pain is a significant problem in children and adolescents that has been addressed through school-based spinal health interventions .
No systematic review has been carried out on this topic to date .