Prevalence of scoliosis in secondary school children in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria.

In order to determine the prevalence and distribution of various parameters associated with scoliosis in school children in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria, a two-year prospective study was carried out. The study was carried out in selected secondary schools in Osogbo township, Osun state, Nigeria. A team consisting of one consultant orthopeadic surgeon, one consultant epidemiologist, community health consultant, two laboratory scientists and one clerk performed the school screening. Simple random sampling was used to select the study population. Informed consent was obtained from the school principals, the students, and the parents of the students. A total of 410 children 190(46.3%) males and 220(53.7%) females aged 9-14 years old were screened. Thirty (7.31%) children had signs of scoliosis but only five (1.21%) had radiological evidence of scoliosis. Prevalence of scoliosis in the study group was 1.2%. A sensitive test for detection of scoliosis was forward bending test. Thoracic curve was most common. Cost of screening was affordable. School screening is simple, and cost effective. This study found that scoliosis is not common in school children in Osogbo, Osun state, Nigeria and therefore does not pose as a major public health problem. However, all the children who had radiological evidence of scoliosis were not aware of this prior to the screening exercise. Early detection has implication for choice of management--an advantage of the screening programme.