KUWAIT: Children in Kuwait suffer from lower back pain just like adults, said a health official at the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Hospital. The difference, according to the hospital’s head of the pediatrics department Noura Al-Subaei, is the type of pain and its causes. The main culprit, she said, was the children’s heavy school bags and their bad posture when they use electronic devices for long periods of time.

The remarks came as the Physiotherapy Department at the Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Hospital marked World Physiotherapy Day under the theme “Physiotherapy and Backache”. The event focused on raising awareness of backache and improving patients’ understanding of the health issue. The department, said Subaei, aims to provide advice to parents to protect their children from back pain.

Head of the men’s physiotherapy department Dr Mustafa Bu Abbas said back conditions are common in society although they are preventable by simple steps and the event aimed at promoting awareness of prevention and treatment means. Acting Hospital Director Shujaa Al-Enezi said colleagues at the hospital’s departments were doing a tremendous job treating patients, adding that the hospital carries out all types of physiotherapy, including water therapy and traditional Chinese therapy. The hospital received 427 cases in 2024, Head of the women’s department Nafeesa Kamal said.