Introduction: Scoliosis, a lateral curvature of the spine, is the most frequent deformity of the spinal column. It is additionally aggravated by the inadequate environmental conditions in schools, such as unadjusted furniture, teaching aids and most of all, school bag and bad lighting.
Material and methods: This investigation was carried out during the years 2005 and 2006 on the territory of the city of Kragujevac and included school children attending 22 primary and 8 secondary schools, whose medical records were obtained from school children health centres, the counseling centre for scoliosis at the Orthopedic Department of the Hospital in Kragujevac and the Institute of Public Health in Kragujevac.
Results: The statistical analysis of these data showed that a significantly higher number of children with scoliosis was detected in 2005, being -chi2 = 11.6, p < 0.01 for primary schools. Scoliosis was more frequent in girls than in boys: in 2005 it was -chi2 = 10.54, p < 0.01 and in 2006 -chi2 = 10.72, p < 0.01 in primary schools, whereas no difference was found in secondary schools in 2005 -chi2 = 4.14, p > 0.05, but in 2006 scoliosis was more frequent in girls -chi2 = 49.51, p < 0.01.
Conclusion: Scoliosis is extremely important in both primary and secondary schools and therefore, it is necessary to intensify preventive systematic examinations of school children.