Effects of an educational back health controlled intervention on knowledge, postural habits and trunk muscle endurance regarding low back pain prevention: 6 months of follow-up.

To study the effect of an educational back health intervention on knowledge, postural habits and trunk muscle endurance regarding low back pain prevention on a group of 12 to 13-year-old students in a 6 months’ follow-up. Three groups of 1st-grade secondary school students were selected. A control group (CG; n=22), an experimental group (EG1; n=36) who participated in a back-health educational programme (BHEP), and a 2nd experimental group (EG2; n=55) who participated in a BHEP plus a follow-up learning contract. The experimental groups improved the level of general knowledge after the intervention (p <0.001) and with a medium-high effect size (EG2 r = 0.75, EG1 r = 0.69). A lower percentage of problems in the lumbar area at the longitudinal level in the experimental groups was observed at 6 months’ follow-up compared to the CG. The proposed back health education programme is effective for up to 6 months.