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Baseline anthropometry, flexibility and strength characteristics and future low‐back pain in adolescent athletes and nonathletes
Author(s) -
Kujala U. M.,
Taimela S.,
Salminen J. J.,
Oksanen A.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of medicine and science in sports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.575
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1600-0838
pISSN - 0905-7188
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0838.1994.tb00426.x
Subject(s) - athletes , physical therapy , anthropometry , medicine , low back pain , flexibility (engineering) , back pain , physical medicine and rehabilitation , alternative medicine , statistics , mathematics , pathology
Factors associated with low‐back pain were sought by examining physical activity, low‐back pain reports and physical measurements in 86 athletes and 33 nonathletes, a total of 119 adolescents (52 boys and 67 girls). The athletic boys participated in team sports (19 in soccer and 17 in ice hockey) and the athletic girls in individual sports or dance (14 in gymnastics, 17 in figure skating, and 19 in ballet). All subjects answered a questionnaire on physical activity and pain history at the beginning of the study and at the 1‐year follow‐up. At the beginning of the study, the subjects also participated in quantitative measurements of anthropometry, flexibility (joint hypermobility and muscular tightness), and strength. In multivariate analysis, decreased lumbar flexion and hip flexor tightness at the baseline were predictive of low‐back pain among boys during the follow‐up. Among girls higher than average body weight at the baseline and low‐back pain during the 12 months preceding the baseline measurements were predictive of low‐back pain during the follow‐up. However, the differences between the groups with and without low‐back pain were small compared with the differences between different physical activity groups. In conclusion, attention should be focused on low‐back pain, which accumulates in adolescent athletes participating in individual sports, such as figure skating and gymnastics. Our results suggest that flexibility and strength measurements are weak predictors in determining athletes at high risk.