Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Back Pain in Children- How Sinister?

  • Review Article
  • Published:
The Indian Journal of Pediatrics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Incidence of back pain among children and adolescents is gradually increasing. Children undergo extensive diagnostic workup that ultimately results in a nonconfirmative diagnosis. A good history and clinical examination can, to a large extent help differentiate non-specific from organic causes of backache. Diagnostic workup may be initiated if symptoms are severe and/or persistant. The authors review some of the common causes of back pain in pediatric population, clinical presentations, and the relevant investigations along with their management.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12
Fig. 13

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Kelsey JL, White AA. Epidemiology and impact of low-back pain. Spine. 1980;5:133–42.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Jones MA, Stratton G, Reilly T, Unnithan VB. A school-based survey of recurrent non-specific low-back pain prevalence and consequences in children. Health Educ Res. 2004;19:284–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Burton AK, Clarke RD, McClune TD, Tillotson KM. The natural history of low back pain in adolescents. Spine. 1996;21:2323–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Sato T, Ito T, Hirano T, et al. Low back pain in childhood and adolescence: a cross-sectional study in Niigata City. Eur Spine J. 2008;17:1441–7.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Fribourg D, Delgado E. Occult spinal cord abnormalities in children referred for orthopedic complaints. Am J Orthop Belle Mead NJ. 2004;33:18–25.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Feldman DS, Hedden DM, Wright JG. The use of bone scan to investigate back pain in children and adolescents. J Pediatr Orthop. 2000;20:790–5.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Auerbach JD, Ahn J, Zgonis MH, Reddy SC, Ecker ML, Flynn JM. Streamlining the evaluation of low back pain in children. Clin Orthop. 2008;466:1971–7.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Miller R, Beck NA, Sampson NR, Zhu X, Flynn JM, Drummond D. Imaging modalities for low back pain in children: a review of spondyloysis and undiagnosed mechanical back pain. J Pediatr Orthop. 2013;33:282–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Gilbert FJ, Grant AM, Gillan MGC, et al. Low back pain: influence of early MR imaging or CT on treatment and outcome--multicenter randomized trial. Radiology. 2004;231:343–51.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Bhatia NN, Chow G, Timon SJ, Watts HG. Diagnostic modalities for the evaluation of pediatric back pain: a prospective study. J Pediatr Orthop. 2008;28:230–3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Davis PJC, Williams HJ. The investigation and management of back pain in children. Arch Dis Child Educ Pract Ed. 2008;93:73–83.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Altaf F, Heran MKS, Wilson LF. Back pain in children and adolescents. Bone Jt J. 2014;96-B:717–23.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Rodriguez DP, Poussaint TY. Imaging of back pain in children. Am J Neuroradiol. 2010;31:787–802.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Cavalier R, Herman MJ, Cheung EV, Pizzutillo PD. Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents: I. Diagnosis, natural history, and nonsurgical management. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2006;14:417–24.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Cheung EV, Herman MJ, Cavalier R, Pizzutillo PD. Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents: II. Surgical management. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2006;14:488–98.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Higashino K, Sairyo K, Katoh S, Takao S, Kosaka H, Yasui N. Long-term outcomes of lumbar posterior apophyseal end-plate lesions in children and adolescents. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2012;94:e74.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Ikata T, Morita T, Katoh S, Tachibana K, Maoka H. Lesions of the lumbar posterior end plate in children and adolescents. An MRI study. J Bone Joint Surg (Br). 1995;77:951–5.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Chang C-H, Lee Z-L, Chen W-J, Tan C-F, Chen L-H. Clinical significance of ring apophysis fracture in adolescent lumbar disc herniation. Spine. 2008;33:1750–4.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Lin C, MacKenzie JD, Courtier JL, Gu JT, Milojevic D. Magnetic resonance imaging findings in juvenile spondyloarthropathy and effects of treatment observed on subsequent imaging. Pediatr Rheumatol Online J. 2014;12:25.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  20. Maxwell LJ, Zochling J, Boonen A, et al. TNF-alpha inhibitors for ankylosing spondylitis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015;4:CD005468.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Palazzo C, Sailhan F, Revel M. Scheuermann’s disease: an update. Jt Bone Spine. 2014;81:209–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Tribus CB. Scheuermann’s kyphosis in adolescents and adults: diagnosis and management. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 1998;6:36–43.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Rajasekaran S. The natural history of post-tubercular kyphosis in children. Radiological signs which predict late increase in deformity. J Bone Joint Surg (Br). 2001;83:954–62.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Jain AK, Sreenivasan R, Mukunth R, Dhammi IK. Tubercular spondylitis in children. Indian J Orthop. 2014;48:136–44.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  25. Bell GR. Surgical treatment of spinal tumors. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 1997;335:54–63.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Simmons ED, Zheng Y. Vertebral tumors: surgical versus nonsurgical treatment. Clin Orthop. 2006;443:233–47.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Singh H, Meyer SA, Jenkins AL 3rd. Treatment of primary vertebral tumors. Mt Sinai J Med. 2009;76:499–504.

  28. Caro PA, Mandell GA, Stanton RP. Aneurysmal bone cyst of the spine in children. MRI imaging at 0.5 tesla. Pediatr Radiol. 1991;21:114–6.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Gasbarrini A, Cappuccio M, Donthineni R, Bandiera S, Boriani S. Management of benign tumors of the mobile spine. Orthop Clin North Am. 2009;40:9–19. v.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Silberstein MJ, Sundaram M, Akbarnia B, Luisiri A, McGuire M. Eosinophilic granuloma of the spine. Orthopedics. 1985;8:264, 267–74.

    Google Scholar 

  31. Sundaresan N, Rosen G, Boriani S. Primary malignant tumors of the spine. Orthop Clin North Am. 2009;40:21–36. v.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Ilaslan H, Sundaram M, Unni KK, Dekutoski MB. Primary Ewing’s sarcoma of the vertebral column. Skelet Radiol. 2004;33:506–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Schellinger KA, Propp JM, Villano JL, McCarthy BJ. Descriptive epidemiology of primary spinal cord tumors. J Neurooncol. 2008;87:173–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Guarantor

AJ will act as guarantor for this paper.

Conflict of Interest

None.

Source of Funding

None.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopedics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, 249201, India

    Pankaj Kandwal

  2. Department of Orthopedics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India

    G. Vijayaraghavan, Ankur Goswami & Arvind Jayaswal

Authors
  1. Pankaj Kandwal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. Vijayaraghavan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ankur Goswami
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Arvind Jayaswal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pankaj Kandwal.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kandwal, P., Vijayaraghavan, G., Goswami, A. et al. Back Pain in Children- How Sinister?. Indian J Pediatr 83, 834–843 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12098-015-1886-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12098-015-1886-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation