For a fact, back pain is common in children and adolescents. If you are concerned, you are not alone. Dig into the information about the causes of back pain in children.

Some of the reasons include:

• Higher body weight
• High intensity regular sports activity
• Weight of backpacks carried by children at school

Warning signs of back pain in children

Most children deal with back pain that result from a muscle or ligament injury.

The common problems to look for are:

• Continuous pain
• General illness like fever, weight loss and chills
• Symptoms that persist for many weeks
• Pains in the night
• Weakness, leg pain and numbness

Muscular Back Pain

Around two thirds of the children complaining about back pain are ultimately diagnosed with muscular back pain. The injuries include ligament and muscle strains, posture problems and poor conditioning of the muscles in the back. Some of the treatments include chiropractic treatment, physical therapy, stretching and massages.

Stress fractures

This occurs in adolescents and children and they may not even be aware that an injury has occurred. It occurs in those involved in sports that include repetitive hyperextension of the spine like divers and gymnasts. The injuries do not heal fast and they can even cause symptoms in young adulthood stages of life. Stress fracture on both sides of the spinal column can cause spondylolysis. Here, non surgical treatment does better.

Alignment problems

If there are problems with the alignment of the spine, it can cause deformity and back pain. The common spinal deformities in children are scoliosis and Scheuermann’s kyphosis. Only severe deformities lead to surgery as an option.

Here are 5 tips to follow if your child’s back hurt from wearing a backpack:

1. Organize the backpack properly

Put the heaviest items on the bottom of the pack. The little things such as calculators and pens should be kept on the top.

2. A backpack with a padded shoulder strap

The neck and shoulder pain due to a heavy backpack reduces significantly with padded shoulder straps. These backpacks have straps wider than the basic backpacks and help to even out the distribution of the pack’s weight.

3. Tighten the strap of the backpack

The loose straps shift the pack’s contents when one moves. This causes muscles to work harder.

4. Center the load of the backpack

A backpack with 18 pounds or more weight creates a temporary side-to-side curve in the spine. Help your child place equal weight on either side of the pack.

5. Wear both the straps

Wearing just one strap contributes to a bad posture habit. It can also cause one sided pain.

Back pain in children and adolescents is becoming a common problem over time. A part of this may be due to the inactiveness of the children. To ensure that this problem does not persist, initiate a proper treatment towards it.

The good news: A vast majority of children with complaints of back pain find relief with proper and timely medical attention.

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