Validation of Two Instruments for the Correct Allocation of School Furniture in Secondary Schools to Prevent Back Pain

Gutiérrez-Santiago, Alfonso; Prieto-Lage, Iván; Carral, José María Cancela; Paramés-González, Adrián

doi:10.3390/ijerph19010020

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 38 publications

(87 reference statements)

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“…The use of the same furniture by primary school children and adolescents may facilitate the adoption of forced positions and may cause long-term discomfort. This assessment is consistent with findings from a study by Gutiérrez-Santiago et al., 45 who have found a high mismatch between secondary school classroom furniture and the students’ anthropometric dimensions. Panagiotopoulou 46 have also observed that most students do not have furniture appropriate for their anthropometric size.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Upper crossed syndrome in secondary school students: A mixed-method study

De-La-Iglesia

Bravo

Rubí-Carnacea

2023

Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Upper crossed syndrome in secondary school students: A mixed-method study

De-La-Iglesia

Bravo

Rubí-Carnacea

2023

Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences

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A trans-generation conundrum with implications in rehabilitation programs – what factors influence non-specific back pain in children?

Vlădăreanu,

Iliescu,

Danteș

2024

Balneo and PRM Research Journal

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Back pain in children and adolescents is one of the most frequent reasons for seeing a medical specialist worldwide. Many factors have been incriminated when it comes to influencing the appearance of non-specific back pain in children as well as in adults. For the younger population, some of the culprits seem to be sitting for long periods, us-ing harmful postural patterns, a forward head posture determined by incorrect positioning during prolonged studying hours, and carrying a too-heavy backpack, but do they really influence non-specific back pain in children? These ques-tions are valid for all generations and countries. This paper aimed to review the published literature to determine whether the factors mentioned above, sitting in mismatched school furniture, carrying heavy backpacks, and forward head posture, influence the incidence of non-specific back pain in children and whether there are any data or differences between the general population and Roma-nian students. For this purpose, we conducted database research using the keywords “non-specific back pain in chil-dren, sitting, school furniture, forward head posture, backpack carrying” and various combinations of these terms, which returned 37 eligible articles for this paper in PubMed - Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and Sci-enceDirect. There was no time limit on the researched articles, and they had to refer to the pediatric population, be open-access and in extenso articles, and be written in English, French, or Spanish. After analyzing the results from these articles, the conclusion is that there is no evident or spe-cific connection between non-specific back pain in pediatric populations and harmful posture patterns while sitting or carrying a backpack. Also, more multicentered research using fewer variables and more objective measurement instruments is needed. Keywords: non-specific back pain in children, sitting, bad posture, school furniture, forward head posture, back-pack carrying

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Asymmetry in the Alignment of School Furniture and Anthropometric Measures: A Comparative Study Between Two Schools in Spain and Portugal

Paramés-González,

Gutiérrez-Santiago,

Fernandes

et al. 2024

Symmetry

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Background: School ergonomics is a subject of growing interest for the scientific community due to the health problems that it is associated with in students, mainly asymmetries in the spine due to the use of chairs and desks that are inadequate for their anthropometry. This study aimed to analyze the anthropometric characteristics and asymmetries among fifth- to ninth-grade students in Spain and Portugal, with the goal of obtaining data on the ideal height of seats and desks. Additionally, it evaluated the correspondence in the recommended sizes of chairs and desks according to the parameters of the European Union catalog and examined the suitability of the height as a criterion for the allocation of school furniture. Methods: Different anthropometric variables, including the height, popliteal height, shoulder-to-seat height, and elbow-to-seat height, were measured in a stratified sample of 500 students (mean age = 12.7 years, SD = 1.2) across different grades (fifth grade = 86, sixth grade = 106, seventh grade = 95, eighth grade = 89, ninth grade = 124), genders (males = 256, females = 244), and countries (Spain = 191, Portugal = 309). These measurements were used to calculate the average ideal seat and desk heights based on anthropometric formulas, which were then compared to the current furniture allocation practices. The statistical analyses included t-tests, chi-squared tests, and effect sizes, with adjustments for multiple comparisons. Results: The results revealed significant asymmetries and low correspondence in the allocation of chairs and desks of the same sizes to students, with a match rate ranging between 40% and 70%. Moreover, the correspondence was even lower when using a formula based solely on height, compared to formulas validated with specific anthropometric measures, particularly for desks, where the asymmetries reached 100% in some grades. Conclusion: These findings highlight the need to improve the adaptation of school furniture to optimize student ergonomics and comfort, and they suggest disregarding the height as the primary criterion for furniture allocation. Additionally, assigning a desk size based on the recommended chair size is discouraged.

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Validation of Two Instruments for the Correct Allocation of School Furniture in Secondary Schools to Prevent Back Pain

Cited by 3 publications

References 38 publications

Upper crossed syndrome in secondary school students: A mixed-method study

Upper crossed syndrome in secondary school students: A mixed-method study

A trans-generation conundrum with implications in rehabilitation programs – what factors influence non-specific back pain in children?

Asymmetry in the Alignment of School Furniture and Anthropometric Measures: A Comparative Study Between Two Schools in Spain and Portugal

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