Trends in the morbidity of children and adolescents in Russia in the process of digital school renewal

   Introduction. A child's health is shaped, to a certain extent, by their daily activities within the context of digital school transformation. The process of digitalization in Russian schools has been ongoing for over 30 years, and education experts identify 4 stages. The first stage (the 1990^s) involved the technological upgrading of schools; the second (2000-2010) was "early informatization"; the third (2010-2019) was "mature informatization"; and the fourth (2019-2023) marks "the beginning of the digital transformation of education". The impact of digital environment factors on schoolchildren's health has not been sufficiently studied.

   Objective. To study the main trends in the morbidity of students with school-related diseases across the four stages of digital school transformation.

   Materials and methods. The analysis was based on data published in the statistical collections of the Central Research Institute of Healthcare Organization and Informatization of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation. We analyzed the incidence and prevalence rates of diseases among children (0–14 years) and adolescents (15–17 years) during the four stages of digital school transformation. The following school-related health disorders were selected: myopia, neuroses, somatoform disorders, and vegetative-vascular disorders with increased blood pressure (caused by visual and psycho-emotional stress), as well as conditions partly associated with physical inactivity and prolonged sitting — scoliosis and obesity/

   Results. Analysis of the dynamics of incidence and prevalence in children and adolescents showed that during the first and second stages of digital school transformation, morbidity increased for almost all the considered disease classes and nosologies. This was due to educational digitalization and the adverse influence of numerous socio-economic factors. During the third stage, the increase in morbidity halted. At the beginning of the fourth stage, incidence and prevalence rates began to gradually rise again. Over the period from 1995 to 2023, the incidence rate in children increased by 55.9 %, and the prevalence rate by 46.9 %; among adolescents, these figures increased by 106.5 and 105.3 %, respectively.

   Conclusions. During the period of digital school transformation from 1995 to 2023, the health status of the child and adolescent population deteriorated. A steady increase in the incidence of myopia and obesity among children and adolescents was revealed, and the incidence of musculoskeletal system diseases also increased. To facilitate further research on this problem, it is necessary to include a broader range of school-related diseases in statistical reporting forms and collections.

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