Musculoskeletal Pain and its Risk Factors Among School-Going Adolescents in Delhi, India

Abstract

Often ignored musculoskeletal pain among adolescent school students can result in the development of musculoskeletal disorders in adulthood. To determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain and its risk factors, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 1600 students (855 males and 745 females) registered in 10 co-educational government schools of Delhi. Demographic details along with Nordic Musculoskeletal, Depression, Anxiety Stress Scale-21, Youth physical activity and modified Sedentary Behaviour Questionnaires (duration of using smartphones and watching television) were administered. The prevalence of musculoskeletal pain was 63% (55-70) at 95% CI. The female gender (p=0.008), moderate to vigorous level physical activity more or less than 60-90 minutes per day (p=0.017), smartphone use ≥ 5 days a week and ≥ 2 hours per day (p=0.02) were the risk factors for developing musculoskeletal pain. The stress (p=0.037), anxiety (p=0.032), and depression (p=0.056) were associated with musculoskeletal pain in Chi-square (Χ2) analysis.

Keywords

• musculoskeletal pain
• adolescent
• physical activity
• smartphone