Possible Influences of a Heavy Backpack on Back Pain Syndrome in Primary School Children / MOGUĆI UTJECAJI TEŽINE ŠKOLSKE TORBE NA BOLNI SINDROM KRALJEŠNICE U DJECE RAZREDNE NASTAVE
Authors: Paušić Jelena , Kujundžić Hrvoje , Penjak Ana 
Published: August 2023

Abstract As they grow, children go through different phases of growth and development, and very often due to various unspecified outside influences, they are overloaded with weight. Heavy backpacks and its correlation to different types of bad posture, as well as pain in particular parts of the back, has been an important issue in the past several years. The aim of this research was to determine average backpack weight in correlation to children's weight in primary school. Also, the aim was to determine if there were some differences between pupils of the first, second, third, and fourth grade of primary school. Further on, it aimed at answering the question whether there was some correlation between the already determined relative backpack weight and the mentioned pain intensity while carrying the backpack. The research was conducted on a sample of 252 primary school pupils (boys and girls). Body weight and backpack weight were measured, and a short interview was also conducted. The short interview concerned feelings, intensity and pain location while carrying and the way they carry the backpack. The results indicate that the average values of the correlation between the backpack weight and the body weight (%) compared with the maximum allowed limit of 10%, in all grades, are in average (16.72%) over the limit, resulting with the maximum rate of 29.17% in grade 1. Out of the total number of pupils, 93.1% responded that they carry the backpack on both shoulders. Out of the whole sample, 87 (31.4%) of them said that they feel pain while carrying the backpack. The majority (18.4%) of subjects felt pain in their lower back. The youngest children in this sample, more precisely, those in grade 1, felt the most pain of high intensity, which is probably due to the fact that their backpack, compared to their body weight, was too heavy. Key words: lower back pain (LBP); primary school; school bag. --- Djeca u odrastanju prolaze kroz faze rasta i razvoja te često zbog utjecaja različitih nespecifičnih vanjskih čimbenika bivaju preopterećena. Proteklih se godina sve češće govori o problemu teške školske torbe i njegovoj povezanosti s različitim tipovima nepravilnog držanja, te pojavi boli u pojedinim dijelovima kralješnice. Cilj ovoga istraživanja bio je utvrditi postotak težine školske torbe u odnosu na tjelesnu težinu učenika razredne nastave i odgovoriti na pitanje postoji li povezanost utvrđenog postotka težine školske torbe u odnosu na tjelesnu težinu i intenziteta prijavljene boli za vrijeme nošenja školske torbe. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 252 učenika i učenica razredne nastave. Izmjerene su vrijednosti težine tijela i težine školske torbe, proveden je kratak intervju koji se odnosio na osjećanje, intenzitet i lokaciju boli za vrijeme nošenja školske torbe i način nošenja školske torbe. Rezultati ukazuju na to da su prosječne vrijednosti odnosa težine torbe i tjelesne težine (%), u usporedbi s dopuštenom maksimalnom granicom od 10%, u svim razredima u prosjeku (16,72%) više od te granice, odnosno da maksimalni postotak u prvom razredu iznosi čak 29,17%. Od ukupnog broja učenika 93,1% učenika odgovorilo je da torbu nose na oba ramena. Od cijelog uzorka njih 87 (31,4%) odgovorilo je da osjeća bol dok nosi školsku torbu. Najveći dio učenika, njih 18,4%, osjeća bol u donjem dijelu leđa. Najmlađa djeca u uzorku, ona koja pohađaju prvi razred, najviše osjećaju bol, i ukazuju na to da je bol velikog intenziteta. Može se pretpostaviti da je razlog takve boli činjenica da je njihova torba, u odnosu na njihovu tjelesnu težinu, preteška.Ključne riječi: bolna leđa; razredna nastava; školska torba