Assessing health status of children and identifying the factors that affect its disorders are the basis of search and development of measures aimed at preserving health of children. The purpose of research was to evaluate the health status of children of primary school age in the dynamics of study in 1–4 grades of modern education institutions. Material and methods. The study was based on analytical, sanitary–epidemiological, statistical methods. The analysis of the copied data of the complex medical examinations of 928 pupils (9–10 years) of the fourth grades (460 boys and 468 girls) and the results of medical examinations for the period of their study in the first grade was conducted. The basic anthropometric parameters were determined by the method of somatometry. The received data were statistically processed. Results and discussion. The analysis of physical development indicators of schoolchildren showed that at the time of entering school 36.50±0.31% of children had harmonious physical development and 63.50±0.41% had disharmonious development. Furthermore, the proportion of groups of children with insufficient and excess weight did not differ (31.70±0.28% and 31.80±0.28%, respectively). In the dynamics of 4 years of study there was an increase in the number of children with underweight to 38.13±0.32%. These changes occurred due to the increase in the number of boys with disharmonious physical development with underweight from 30.06±0.55% in the first grade up to 44.51±0.72% – in the fourth (р˂0.01). We also found out that 73.91% of children (75.0% of boys and 72.95% of girls) were diagnosed as healthy at the time of entering school. At the same time, the number of healthy children was higher in the group of schoolchildren who started their studies at the age of 6 (76.77%) compared to the first–graders of the 7 year age group (71.77%). Thus, the number of healthy children decreased by 7.24% during the study period. Four years from the beginning of the study up to 15.07% increased the share of the group of detected eye diseases and auxiliary apparatus; 6.21% of the diseases were deviations from the musculoskeletal system; the number of diseases of the cardiovascular system increased from 1.7% to 3.77%; 3.76% of diseases of the respiratory system were also diagnosed. The duration of one case of incapacity for acute respiratory diseases remained almost unchanged (2.97 days in 2015 and 2.81 days in 2018). Over the four years of study, the number of students in the main medical group in physical education decreased by 0.54% due to the decrease in the number of healthy children (due to an increase of 0.65% in the proportion of the preparatory group and 0.1% – exempt from the lessons of physical culture). Conclusion. Assessment of the current status and trends of junior school children’s health indicates a serious trouble, which can affect deterioration of quality of life and significant limitation on realization of social functions of the population in the coming years. Therefore, in addressing children’s health issues, we see the need for a holistic approach to education and healthcare.

Keywords: children, primary school age, physical development, health status

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