Background/aims This study aims to assess adolescents' level of knowledge and attitudes towards low back pain (LBP) as this is required for effective prevention. As knowledge and attitude can influence occurrence, this study correlates adolescents' level of knowledge and attitude towards LBP with its occurrence in Mangalore, India. Methods A cross-sectional survey with a self-administered questionnaire was conducted among 605 students from four pre-university colleges to evaluate their knowledge of, attitude to, and the occurrence of LBP. Results This study revealed a moderate level of knowledge (45.39%) and a good attitude (61.95%) towards LBP. The lifetime prevalence of LBP among adolescents is 30.5%. No correlation was found between knowledge and the occurrence (χ2=5.03, P=0.17) but a correlation exists between adolescents' attitudes and the occurrence of LBP (χ2=14.64, P=0.002). Conclusion Even with a moderate knowledge and a good attitude, the number of adolescents with LBP is considerable in this region and, therefore, prevention strategies need to be initiated.

Background/Aims: Job and career satisfaction is an integral part of an individual's professional life. It affects job performance, consequently influencing growth of the profession. Physiotherapy in India is maturing making such data indispensable. This study aims to assess the level of job and career satisfaction among Indian physiotherapists. Methods: A cross-sectional pilot survey was done with a self-administered e-questionnaire and the 265 surveys collected were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis. Results: Overall job satisfaction is 63.68% (3.35±1.32) and career satisfaction is 56.39% (2.84±1.39). Conclusions: The majority of physiotherapists were moderately satisfied with their jobs and careers. It is essential to incorporate favourable factors in the workplace that promote professional satisfaction and there is a need to enhance opportunities for continued medical education. This study provides a global outlook of a developing country.

Measuring the structural deformities of the spine is always a challenge for the clinician, since it is important to make clinical decision. When repeated exposure to the X ray has to be reduced in the routine practice, rehabilitation professionals are looking for a tool to be used in daily practice. Rasterstereography is one such method used from the early of 1980s attracted the attention of clinician in the western world. Recently it has been introduced to the developing countries like India. In this context it is important to analyse the available evidence pertaining to rasterstereography. AimThe aim of this paper is to review the available published papers and critically analyse the results in terms of reliability, validity and clinical use of this tool. MethodA structured literature review was done in PubMed, Ovid, Embase and CINHAL data base using rasterstereography, scoliosis and spine measurement as key words. Boolean logic was used to combine and restrict the results. The articles were restricted to English language. All the articles were appraised by the authors independently by using a predetermined review sheet, which consisted of details including population studied, number subjects, study method, statistical analysis used, results and critical view of the authors. Results20 articles were identified after the search, of which 7 studies used rasterstereography in scoliosis population. There are studies which compared the rasterstereography with gold standard radio graphic measurement. Results of the high quality studies explored the utility of this tool in the evaluation of the scoliosis. This paper will discuss the advantages and challenges of using this tool in daily clinical practice. ConclusionThis critical review identifies the advantages of rasterstereography in scoliosis assessment and the future direction in using this novel too in the diagnosis and the management of scoliosis.