Spinal mobility and trunk muscle strength in 15-year-old schoolchildren with and without low-back pain

From a population of 1,503-schoolchidren, 38 15-year-old children suffering from low-back pain and 38 asymptomatic controls were selected for testing of spinal mobility and trunk muscle strength. The asymptomatic controls were matched by age, sex, and school class. In the group with recurrent or continual low-back pain (17 boys and 21 girls), the boy were over 4 cm taller than those in the control group. In both sexes saggital mobility was decreased in lumbar extension and straight leg raising, and increased in lumbar flexion