Prevalence of Scoliosis in Elementary School Students Aged 8-11 Years

Abstract

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a spinal abnormality commonly found in children and adolescents with a prevalence rate of 0.5-5.2%. Data on scoliosis in Indonesia is yet to be available. Our study was aimed at screening and comparing school children with normal posture and with suspected scoliosis (SS). 1059 elementary school students (477 boys, 582 girls) from grade 3 to grade 6 in Jakarta participated in this study. Body mass and height were measured according to the standard technique. Axial rotation of the spine was measured using a scoliometer. Results were classified into two groups: normal if the axial rotation angle was <5° and scoliosis was suspected if the angle was ≥5°. An independent t-test was used to analyze anthropometric differences between the normal and SS group. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05. 74 (7%) of the 1059 students were SS, consisting of 24 (5 %) boys and 50 (8.6 %) girls (OR 1.98, P=0.004). Students at the age of 10 had the highest incidence of scoliosis (27 or 10.1%). Girls with SS were significantly taller and with lower BMI values (138.6 cm vs 134.6 cm, p=0.014; 16.95 kg/m2 vs 18.50 kg/m2, p=0.028). The scoliosis rate in elementary students in Jakarta was about 7 % with higher prevalence in girls.