Differences in the Prevalence of Postural Disorders of the Spine in Lower Grades of Elementary School Students

Abstract

The study was conducted on a sample of 146 respondents - lower grade elementary school students, chronological age 7 - 11 years old, in the urban area of the city of Banja Luka. The total sample of respondents was divided into five subsamples according to chronological age. The main objective of the study was to determine the frequency and structure of postural disorders of the spinal column in the studied sample of subjects, as well as the differences in the prevalence of postural disorders with respect to the chronological age of the subjects, using a transversal cross-section. To assess the prevalence and differences in postural disorders of the spinal column, disorders in the sagittal plane (kyphosis and lordosis) and disorders in the frontal plane (scoliosis) were analyzed. The degree of postural disorders of the spinal column was determined using Contingency Tables - calculating frequencies (F) and percentages (%). The statistical significance of the differences in the prevalence of postural disorders of the spinal column in the sagittal (kyphosis and lordosis) and frontal planes (scoliosis) in lower elementary school students was determined using Univariate Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and the differences in relation to their chronological age for each type of disorder were determined using the analysis of the results of the Post Hock comparison test. The degree of postural disorders of the spinal column determined by Contingency Tables - by calculating the frequency (F) and percentage (%) indicates a significant percentage of spinal column disorders (kyphosis 21.2%, scoliosis 19.9%, lordosis 19.2%), mainly in the first degree of deformation (minor deviation from the normal status), which allows for correction of the condition with the application of adequate corrective exercises in working with students of this age. The results of the univariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) show that the prevalence of kyphosis is statistically significant at the level of statistical significance p<.007 and scoliosis p<.001 in the studied sample of students. The statistical significance of the prevalence of lordosis in the studied sample of students was not determined (p= .255). The results of the LSD Post Hock comparison test show that there is a statistically significant difference in the prevalence of kyphosis and scoliosis between groups of students with regard to their chronological age.