Prevalence of neck, shoulder and back pain and its associated risk factors in secondary school female students in Hayatabad, Peshawar

Introduction: It is common to find school children experiencing musculoskeletal pains. Serious health conditions may occur if these pains are ignored. Neck, shoulder and back pain have been found to be linked with heavy school bags, prolonged use of mobiles or computers and school furniture. This research was conducted to find out the prevalence of neck, shoulder, back pain and associated risk factors in females of secondary schools in Hayatabad, Peshawar, Pakistan. Materials & Methods: Schools were selected by simple random sampling in Hayatabad region. Female students who were willing to participate between age 14-16 years were included in the study. Screening was done on students and those who met both the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included in the study. Exclusion criteria included students with the systemic disease, fractures, RTA, inflammatory joint conditions and menstrual pain. A modified version of Nordic and Dutch questionnaire was handed over to 323 female students. Risk factors included school bag, gadget use, school furniture, sleeping surface and mode of transport to school were measured. Results were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: Most of the pains were prevalent among those females who belonged to Peshawar (22%). Neck pain was found among 7.1% of the students, shoulder pain in10.2% and back pain in 23.2% of the included population. Association was found between neck-shoulder-back pain and school bags, school furniture and prolonged gadget use. Sitting, standing and being in an uncomfortable posture for a long time proved to be the risk factors for these musculoskeletal conditions. Conclusion: Neck, shoulder and back pain were more among the female secondary school students who belonged from Peshawar. These conditions were associated with heavy school bags, prolonged gadget use, school furniture but not with body mass index.