Postural assessment of girls between 7 and 10 years of age.
Postural alterations are often found in children and teenagers. In this stage of development, the posture undergoes many adjustments and adaptations due to changes of the body and to demanding psychosocial factors.


OBJECTIVE
To identify which postural alterations occur most often in students between 7 and 10 years of age, to identify preventive measures, and to provide information to parents and teachers about the problem of bad posture.


METHODS
Thirty three girls in each of 4 age groups between 7 and 10 years of age were assessed, resulting in a sample of 132 subjects. Photos of each girl in the sagittal and frontal planes were examined for postural deviations.


RESULTS
The main postural deviations found were knock-knee, medial rotation of the hip, antepulsion, pelvic anteversion, knee hyperextension, lumbar hyperlordosis, valgus ankle, imbalanced shoulders, lateral pelvic inclination, scoliosis, trunk rotation, thoracic hyperkyphosis, winged scapula, shoulder protraction, abducted scapula, medial rotation of shoulders, and head tilt.


CONCLUSIONS
High incidences of postural alterations occur in children of school age. Some of these reflect normal postural development, and get corrected during the child's growth. On the other hand, some alterations are asymmetries that can be caused by daily demands on the body and can result in negative impacts on the quality of life during childhood and adulthood. We emphasize the importance of providing information to parents and teachers about the problem of bad posture.
Penha
Patrícia Jundi
PJ
Physiotherapy, Audiology, and Occupational Therapy and the Pediatric Department, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
João
Sílvia Maria Amado
SM
Casarotto
Raquel Aparecida
RA
Amino
Carlos Junichiro
CJ
Penteado
Daniela Caielli
DC
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D007592:Joint Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000503:physiopathology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010781:Photography; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology*; D012600:Scoliosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D013663:Teaching