NTRODUCTION
Back pain is currently a health problem of
school children which can limit daily-life activ-
ities. Sedentary lifestyle is possibly the most
important factor determining back pain among
school children. According to the 2006 Spanish
National Health Enquiry, 11.8% of students
aged 10–15 classifi
ed themselves as sedentary.
1
Sedentarism along with lack of physical activ-
ity contributes to a lower muscular tonicity of
the back. Some studies have shown that an indi-
vidual with back pain in adolescence is more
likely to develop low back pain in adult life or
that heavy backpacks can cause neck, shoulders
and back muscular problems, such as scolio-
sis.
2 3
Experts recommend that school children
should not carry loads exceeding 10% of their
body weight.
4
The objective of this study is to analyse the
infl
uence of backpack weight on back pain and
back pathologies