[Lumbar hyperlordosis in children and adolescents at a privative school in southern Brazil: occurrence and associated factors].

Posture assessment during childhood and adolescence allows early detection of postural disorders and adoption of preventive measures. This study evaluated the occurrence of lumbar hyperlordosis and associated factors in 467 children and adolescents aged 10 to 16 years at a school in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. Lumbar hyperlordosis was defined as increased lumbar curvature evaluated by photography. Prevalence of lumbar hyperlordosis was 78%. Factors positively associated with lumbar hyperlordosis were female gender (PR = 1.08; 95%CI: 1.03; 1.13), abdominal strength below the 20th percentile (PR = 1.10; 95%CI: 1.05; 1.15), and flexibility below the 20th percentile (PR = 1.07; 95%CI: 1.01; 1.12). Lumbar hyperlordois was negatively associated with lumbar mobility (PR = 0.90; 95%CI: 0.85; 0.96) and height (PR = 0.995; 95%CI: 0.99; 0.999). Effective strategies to improve physical fitness in schoolchildren are necessary, because low abdominal strength and low flexibility were associated with lumbar hyperlordosis.