Currently submitted to: JMIR Public Health and Surveillance
Date Submitted: Feb 12, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Feb 13, 2025 - Apr 10, 2025
(currently open for review)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
The prevalence of postural deficiencies in Romanian preadolescent children and the correlation with foot conditions, body composition, and coordination: a cross-sectional study
ABSTRACT
Background:
Correct posture during preadolescence is essential, as it can influence harmonious physical development and long-term health.
Objective:
This study aims to estimate the prevalence of postural deficiencies among preadolescents and establish whether there is a correlation between bad posture, body composition, and coordination or between foot conditions and spine postural deficiencies.
Methods:
The study included 983 children assessed for posture, plantar pressure, and general coordination.
Results:
Results:
The most prevalent spine deficiency was found to be the head forward posture (641/983, 65.2%). It was found a strong negative correlation of BMI with the presence of kyphosis (r=-.072, n=983, p<.001) and hyperlordosis (r=.020, n=983, p=.009). The correlation analysis also shows that there is a significant association between ankle valgus and the presence of scoliosis (x2(1)=7.87,p=.005) and between flat feet and coordination (x2(3)=22.96, p=.005) and the presence of scoliosis (x2(1)=12.18, p<.001).
Conclusions:
The most common spinal deficiency observed was forward head posture. Significant correlations were found between body composition and kyphosis, hyperlordosis, ankle valgus, flatfoot, scoliosis, and coordination. Early detection and targeted prevention programs for school children are crucial to address these postural deficiencies effectively.
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