Prevalence of spinal abnormalities among the male junior high school students of Kermanshah city

Introduction: Skeletal abnormalities affect physical efficiency and fitness during daily life and sports activities. This research was carried out to evaluate different spinal abnormalities of male junior high school students.

Methods: The study population comprised of male junior high school students in Kermanshah, Iran, among whom 390 students were selected by cluster sampling. The required data were collected by spinal examination using New York test, Thomas test, Adam’s test, and flexible ruler, and the data of somatotypes were collected by Sheldon method. The obtained data were analyzed by descriptive statistics.

Results: The results showed that 18.93% of students were in normal physical condition, and 81.03% of them suffered from at least one kind of abnormality. Among spinal abnormalities, the sway back and flat back abnormalities (2.56%) were found to have the lowest prevalence and right shoulder dropping (65.64%) and hyperlordosis (38.46%) were found to have the highest prevalence. Regarding their body type, 61.8% of the samples were ectomorphic, 21.79% were endomorphic, and 16.41% were mesomorphic.

Conclusion: The findings showed a high incidence of abnormalities among students. Although this level of prevalence is less than those of some other societies, it is obviously indicative of a lack of sufficient attention to the physical health of students.