["The body-consciousness in school"--a back pain-school]

The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the extent of back pain in a school population and to evaluate if it was possible to minimize the number of complaints by increasing the body-consciousness in school children and education of pupils, teachers, and parents.

A prospective, controlled interventional study in two comparable schools with pupils from pre-school up to and including ninth level. All pupils and their parents completed a questionnaire before and after the intervention.

The share of pupils with back pain increased in the older age groups, whereas the frequency of physical activity decreased. Pupils who disliked going to school had more frequently back pain than pupils who liked going to school, and pupils who liked going to school were more physically active. There was a correlation between the back pain of the pupils and that of their parents. The intervention did not have any effect on the back pain of the pupils or their parents.

There was no significant effect of the intervention, which might be explained by the relatively short time of implementation and unexpected practical problems at the school. The base-line values showed a correlation between age and back pain and between back pain and "do not like going to school". The frequency of physical activity decreased in the older age groups. Physically active pupils liked best going to school. There is a uniformity in the complaints of the parents and children and their reaction to the symptoms.