[Analysis of the prevalence of scoliosis and associated factors in a population of Mexican schoolchildren using sifting techniques].

Background: It is known that in the last decade, spinal disorders are increasing among children, and this generates high concern in areas of healthcare and educational stakeholders to develop preventative strategies to help curb this trend. This paper intends to go a step further in this direction and to explore factors associated with the presence of scoliosis hump, thus contributing to a better approach in the treatment and prevention of this disease in Mexican schools.

Objectives: The objectives of the study were to analyze the prevalence of scoliosis, posture, laterality, obesity, early plant development, and deformity in schoolchildren aged 9-12 years of Ciudad Carmen (Mexico) and to check the possible relationship of the latter with the presence of hump scoliosis.

Methods: The sample consisted of 295 Mexican schoolchildren, analyzed in 2012, with an average age of 10.36 years (SD: 1,142); valued by Adams Test, Posture Kendall, BMI, Edinburgh inventory test, and plantogram sitting height. For analysis of the data, SPSS 20.0 was used.

Results: The number of subjects who had scoliosis was 42 (14.2%), improper posture occurred in 123 (41.7%) cases, 158 (53.5%) subjects were obese, in 63.7% maturational development had not started, most were skilled and had a normal foot type, and after the binary logistic regression analysis, the factors with a significant level of association with the presence of scoliosis were laying hump (Exp [B]: 5.569; 2.746-11.757), the type of foot (Exp [B]: 0151; 0.033-0.652), and age (Exp [B]: 242; 0.192-0.877).

Conclusions: The prevalence of scoliosis among Mexican schoolchildren is similar to that found in other parts of the world. half of the school presented data from obesity and four in ten students had abnormal posture. Furthermore, the model indicated that subjects with correct posture were five-times less likely to develop scoliosis hump, that schoolchildren with normal feet were 14% less likely to have scoliosis, and that the risk increased with age.