Trends in prevalence among children in secondary schools under the contemporary educational process and exposure to environmental factors

Introduction. Trends in of schoolchildren’s health highlights the importance of performing complex estimates aimed at identifying what influence of the contemporary education process and environmental factors have on prevalence among children and adolescents.

Materials and methods. The research involved examining data obtained by a profound medical examination of three hundred thirty nine schoolchildren attending municipal secondary schools with different educational programs. In this research, the test group (146 schoolchildren who attended a gymnasium) and the reference group (193 schoolchildren who attended an ordinary secondary school) were divided into several sub-groups based on their age group. We analyzed data of medical and social questioning, ‘Weekly Rations of a school student’ and school schedules covering classes and breaks between them. All the data were analyzed using conventional statistical procedures and logistic modelling together with calculation of relative risks.

Results. We established different ratios of harmful components related to the educational process, lifestyle, diets, and the environment in schools with different educational programs. This fact indicates the examined exposure to be multi-factorial and determines some peculiarities of incidence and unfavourable age periods in clinical courses of diseases among schoolchildren attending a gymnasium or an ordinary secondary school. Causation of negative health outcomes in schoolchildren by lifestyle factors equaled R² = 0.11–0.86; the educational process, R² = 0.10–0.84; environmental factors, R² = 0.13–0.58.

Limitations: a rather small sample.

Conclusion. Schoolchildren in gymnasium have 3.1–4.8 higher risks of diseases of the endocrine and musculoskeletal system in primary school; diseases of the nervous system, in senior school; ophthalmic pathologies, during the whole school period. Likelihood of digestive diseases and diseases of the musculoskeletal system grows by 4.6–41.0 times in middle and senior school. Greater effectiveness of medical check-ups and timely identification of risk factors are the most important tools for creating an integral preventive environment.

Compliance with ethical standards. The research program was approved by the local ethics committee (protocol No. 7 of March 11, 2020). Voluntary informed consent of the children’s legal representatives was formalized.

Contribution of the authors:
Valina S.L. — study concept and design, data collection and processing, writing the text;
Shtina I.Е. — data collection and processing, statistical analysis;
Ustinova О.Yu. — study concept and design, writing the text;
Maklakova О.А. — data processing.
All the authors have approved on the final version of the manuscript and bear full responsibility for the integrity of the whole article.

Acknowledgment. The study had no sponsorship.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Received: August 2, 2023
Accepted: October 11, 2023
Published: December 23, 2023