Musculoskeletal pain in obese adolescents [Dor músculo-esquelética em adolescentes obesos]

Objective: to determine the prevalence of pain,musculoskeletal syndromes,orthopedic disorders and using computers and playing videogames among obese adolescents. methods: this was a cross-sectional study that investigated 100 consecutive obese adolescents and 100 healthy-weight controls using a confidential,self-report questionnaire covering demographic data,sports participation,painful musculoskeletal system symptoms and using computers and playing videogames. the questionnaire's test-retest reliability was tested. physical examination covered six musculoskeletal syndromes and seven orthopedic disorders. results: the kappa index for test-retest was 0.724. pain and musculoskeletal syndromes were equally prevalent in both groups (44 vs. 56%,p = 0.09; 12 vs. 16%,p = 0.541; respectively). notwithstanding,orthopedic disorders (98 vs. 76%,p = 0.0001),tight quadriceps (89 vs. 44%,p = 0.0001) and genu valgum (87 vs. 24%,p = 0.0001) were significantly more prevalent in obese adolescents than in controls. median time spent using a computer the day before,on saturdays and on sundays were all lower among the obese subjects (30 vs. 60 minutes,p = 0.0001; 1 vs. 60 minutes,p = 0.001; and 0 vs. 30 minutes,p = 0.02; respectively). obese adolescents were less likely to play handheld videogames (2 vs. 11%,p = 0.003) and there was no difference in the two groups' use of full-sized videogames (p > 0.05). comparing obese adolescents with pain to those free from pain revealed that pain was more frequent among females (59 vs. 39%,p = 0.048) and was associated with greater median time spent playing on sundays [0 (0-720) vs. 0 (0-240) minutes,p = 0.028]. conclusions: obesity can cause osteoarticular system damage at the start of adolescence,particularly to the lower limbs. programs developed specifically for obese female adolescents with musculoskeletal pain are needed. copyright © 2011 by sociedade brasileira de pediatria.