Special schoolbag to take the burden off young shoulders

The project has been initiated after a study headed by the doctor found that several children were suffering from scoliosis or spine deformity partly brought on by carrying heavy back loads.

“We are in the process of designing the bag that will be aligned with the spine based on gravity and the weight,” explained Professor Dr Mohsin El-Sayyad, Dean of Allied Health Sciences in Gulf Medical University who initiated the study among school children in 2008.

A Canadian company has been roped in to manufacture the bag. “As soon as we deliver the design, 
probably by September, the manufacturing process will start in Canada,” he said.

He also said that the company had agreed to deliver 25 bags free for the purpose of testing. “We will check the stress levels on the backs of the children involved in the study before finalising the design,” he said.

The idea struck Dr El-Sayyad after his study found a number of mild and moderate cases of bent spine among school children.

“In the first phase of the study, 48 children from 85 public schools in Ajman and Sharjah were found to suffering from the deformity,” he said.

Now in its third phase, the study and screening programme has found another 42 children between the ages of 10-16 years with the same problem.

The study will end in August after having screened up to 6,000 children. “We have developed a new screening method known as the high speed photography that is more accurate and safer than x-ray,” said the doctor.

Scoliosis is an angulation (sideward bend) of the spine that usually develops during pre-adolescent years.

Besides heavy school bags, the study suggests that the deformity was also caused by the long hours’ children spent ‘slouched’ while watching TV and playing games on the computer and play stations.

On an average, a student has to carry between 4-10 kg of books to school every day, he said.

Trolley bags do not help either, he says. “Children end up pulling the bag with one hand which is even more dangerous for them,” he added.

The department also provides free treatment to mild and moderate cases by offering them electrotherapy, muscle stimulation and exercise. “If treated in time, the deformity can be corrected 100 per cent. Extreme cases require surgery,” he added.

asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com