Prevalence of Low Back Pain among Adolescent Students in a Nigerian Urban Community

Abstract

This school-based survey was aimed at determining the prevalence of low-back pain (LBP) among adolescent students of selected secondary schools in Ibadan, Nigeria. Nine hundred secondary schools students, comprising 415 boys and 485 girls, with age range 12-17 years were surveyed. They were required to complete a self-developed, three-part items questionnaire which collected information on socio-demographic characteristics, history and intensity of low back pain, factors predisposing to low back pain, and activity limitations suffered because of low back pain. The 12-month and point prevalence of LBP among participants were 40.7% and 12.9% respectively. For boys the 12-month prevalence of LBP was 41.7% and for girls it was 39.8%. The point prevalence of LBP was 14.2% for girls and 11.3% for boys. Most of the participants had their first LBP experience at 10-15 years, with a peak at 12-14 years. The LBP experienced by most participants was of short duration and only a few episodes, suggesting non-chronicity. Over 50% of the participants were involved in activities that make them frequently bend at the waist. The findings of this survey suggest that LBP is fairly prevalent among Nigerian adolescents. Health education on LBP prevention will help reduce its incidence in this population. KEYWORDS : low back pain, prevalence, adolescent students, Nigeria