Preventing dance injuries: current perspectives

Figures & data

Table 1 Contributors to dance injury

General cause	Specific cause	Alterable with conservative management?
Improper training	Lack of warm-up exercise routine	Yes
	Repetitive jumping	Yes
	Poor alignment of body weight	Yes
	Disregarded overuse/fatigue	Yes
Faulty technique	“Sickling” (forefoot/hindfoot varus in demi-pointe or en pointe)	Yes
	“Winging” (forefoot/hindfoot valgus in demi-pointe or en pointe)	Yes
	“Rolling in” (foot hyperpronation)	Yes
	Poor turnout (inadequate hip external rotation)	Somewhat
	Anterior pelvic tilt	Yes
Environmental hazard	Hard floors Ill-fitting shoes	Depends on facility Yes
	Barefoot dancing	Depends on genre* and instructor
Structural deformity of the foot	Hallux rigidus	Somewhat
	Hallux valgus	Somewhat
	Pes cavus (high arch)	No, but treatable
	Pes planus (flat foot)	No, but treatable
Biomechanical imbalance	Poor core strength	Yes
	Weak eccentric strength of leg muscles	Yes
	Pelvic muscle imbalance or inflexibility	Yes
	Tight Achilles’ tendon	Somewhat
	Hypermobility syndrome (Beighton score ≥4)	No, but manageable

Notes:

* Barefoot dancing is integral (and, thus, unmodifiable) to many dance forms; eg, modern/contemporary and several ethnic genres.

Adapted from Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 85(3 Suppl 1), Sports and performing arts medicine. 6. Issues relating to dancers, S75–S78, Copyright 2004, with permission from Elsevier.⁹⁹ The table has been reconfigured for clarity. Items in italics are additions to Toledo et al’s list, as are the commentaries in the rightmost column.

Figure 1 A ballet dancer standing en pointe. Note the extreme talocrural plantar flexion and the architecture of the midfoot, the combination of which is required for the dancer to attain this position.

ToledoSDAkuthotaVDrakeDFNadlerSFChouLHSports and performing arts medicine. 6. Issues relating to dancersArch Phys Med Rehabil2004853 Suppl 1S75S7815034860

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