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Growth and injuries?
Childhood and adolescence are characterised by marked somatic growth, and significant musculoskeletal, physiological and pubertal development. Musculoskeletal conditions become increasingly prevalent when growing up, and are thought to predict pain and disability later in life.1 However, Swain et al ( see page 1246 ) dispute that there is a meaningful association between biological maturation, growth and musculoskeletal conditions in adolescence. They advise clinicians to refrain from inferring a causal relationship between maturity, growth and musculoskeletal conditions in adolescents. This raises the question of the specific role of loading in the growing child.
Offload schoolbags to prevent back pain?
Heavy schoolbags have traditionally been linked to back pain in children and adolescents, leading to ongoing discussions among parents, school teachers and scientists. An intriguing question is how much academic load (books!) can be carried safely by children. Yamato et al ( see page 1241 ) show that there is no convincing evidence …