Common Dance Injuries, Unravelled for you
Being aware about how and where you can injure yourself is half the battle won. Learn all about these 7 common dance injuries and how to prevent them by ReLiva physiotherapy experts, in this blog article.
Here is a brief overview for you:
- Preventing Dance Injuries
- Ankle Sprain and Achilles Tendonitis
- Snapping Hip Syndrome
- Stress fracture
- Neck Strain
- Rotator Cuff Tendonitis
- Shoulder impingement
- Meniscus Knee Tear
- Lumbopelvic complex
Whether it is Zumba, Ballet, jazz, hip hop, Bollywood dance or bhangra; Dance has grown beyond an art form and has fast gained acceptance as a great exercise for physical fitness. Today dance is being vouched as the best exercise to boost your energy: physical as well as mental. And it works for all genders and all age groups.
Infact, dance and physical fitness share a symbiotic relationship: they go hand in hand. Regular dancers are meant to be fit and flexible. Physical strength and flexibility are of key importance for a skilled dancer. However, dancers do suffer with injuries, that too very often.
As per a study done among dancers, more than half (52 percent) of dance injuries were strains and sprains, and 45 percent were caused by falls. Forty percent of injured dancers were aged 15 to 19 years. [Study published in the Journal of Physical Activity & Health.]
In this article, we attempt to cover the seven most common dance injuries that our physiotherapists treat very often among our patients (across ReLiva Physiotherapy clinics in India). We hope that awareness about these injuries will also prepare you to take due precautions and prevent them.
We begin with a few tips that apply for most dance regimes irrespective of the nature of injuries they may cause.
Preventive Measures for Dance Injuries
The majority of overuse injuries and even some traumatic dance injuries can be prevented. Follow these guidelines to reduce your risk of injury:
- Stay hydrated before, during and after class.
- Get enough rest and avoid overtraining.
- Do cross-training exercises to build strength and endurance for all parts of your body.
- Always wear proper shoes and attire for a session.
- Always warm up before training or performances.
- Lead a healthy lifestyle and get to know your body. Your body should be well nourished and not run short of nutrients to cause dizzy spells, injuries and falls.
- Core and hip strengthening exercises like Pilates and stability-based yoga are great for dancers. And so are aerobic and cardiovascular activities, such as running, swimming or biking. They get your heart rate up and help build stamina for long performances.
- Many dancers don’t do enough cardio during their regular training. An interval of 30 minutes, three to four times a week is usually enough to improve your endurance.
- As always, do this in moderation and in short intervals to avoid stressing your joints. Being screened by a physical therapist with experience in treating musculoskeletal and dance injuries will help you identify individual areas of weakness to address with specific exercises.
Having covered over all preventive measures for dancers, let us get to specifics. Here are the most common dance injuries and their treatment line and prevention.
1. Foot and Ankle :
(Ankle Sprain Achilles and Tendonitis or Injury)
“It’s not broken” gives little solace to the dancer who suffers “only a sprain” because the pain keeps her grounded until it heals. Dancers are typical victims of sprains because of the movements involved in dancing, such as rapid directional changes, twists and turns, jumps and landing.
The long tendon on the back of the leg, the Achilles, takes repeated abuse in many activities. Eventually, it may become inflamed, inflexible and causes nagging pain in the heel and lower calf. Dancing “through the pain” can cause the tendon to tear, which makes it subject to rupture. When it ruptures, the pain is so sharp in the back of the leg that it feels like being kicked.
Treatment:
You should give adequate rest to the injured foot for it to heal. In most cases, following RICE protocol at home will bring down the pain and related symptoms and no drastic interventions like surgery will be required.
Prevention:
- Strengthening ankle muscles and ligaments is the best way to prevent this kind of injuries.
- Avoid active movements of ankle in all directions.
- Start with proper warming up movements and stretches to calf, hamstrings and quadriceps before each dancing session.
Related Reading:
Ankle Pain : Cause and treatment
Sprains and Strains : RICE protocol
2. Stress Fracture :
Repeated use of the foot and leg can cause a stress fracture, which is a tiny break of the bone. The pain ranges from dull to intense, but can be relentless. A stress fracture is more likely in climates where insufficient sunlight exposure leads to Vitamin D deficiency, which leads to weakened bones. It may also be associated with a recent change in exercise routine, increased intensity, or switching activities. The stress fracture in the foot or lower leg is a common injury for dancers who run or jump.
Treatment:
- If a fracture happens, you must see a doctor immediately, who may choose to immobilize the affected joint
- An appropriate rehab thereafter will gradually get you back to pre-fracture mobility.
Prevention:
- Learning correct biomechanics helps.
- Eating food rich in calcium and vitamin D will help to prevent the bones from getting weak.
- Doing weight bearing exercises help to maintain bone health.
Related Reading:
Fracture : Don’t leave it half healed
3. Hip / Pelvic area :
(Snapping Hip Syndrome)
Iliotibial (IT) band tightness, weakness along the outside of the hip and lordosis can cause this syndrome. Dancers will experience a snapping rubber-band–like sound in the frontal hip joint, as the IT band glides over the greater trochanter (upper-leg bone).
Treatment:
You may be suggested Foam rolling by your physiotherapist, which is likely to help your hip flexors, quadriceps, IT band, and glutes.
Prevention:
- Strengthening glutes is of foremost importance.
- Working to strengthen the lower abs and all pelvic stabilizers (abductors, adductors, hip flexors), and
- Avoid turning out at the feet, which stresses the knees and hips.
Related Reading :
SI Joint / Pelvic Pain – Do’s & Don’ts
Understanding Spondylosis VS Spondylitis
Rimjhim Dey remarks, “I am a professional dancer, and I started having pain around my knees 3 years ago.” She found ReLiva Physiotherapy and Rehab and booked a consult with Dr. Krystle at ReLiva clinic. At the end of her treatment, she quips, “We’re done with 9 sessions and my pain has reduced drastically. I can very happily say that my pain is near to gone!”
Ms Rimjhim has been highly recommending ReLiva Physiotherapy and has already seen several of her colleagues and friends recover and get back to their dancing career!
An Injury Slowing You Down?
Take Professional Help and Get back to Your Active Lifestyle
4. Neck :
(Neck Strain)
Choreography that calls for excessive head movement can easily strain dancers’ neck muscles, especially if dancer does not use the full spine properly when arching the head.
Treatment:
- Giving rest to your neck and avoiding the jerky painful movements would usually aid the recovery of your neck.
- However, if pain persists beyond 3-4 days, it is best to consult a physiotherapist.
- In case there is inflammation along with reddishness in the affected area, you should immediately see a doctor.
Prevention:
- Learning to lengthen the neck muscles rather than collapsing them is of critical importance.
- Working to improve flexibility of neck and scapular muscles is found to be useful.
- Strengthening of upper back muscles that will eventually support the neck and upper limb
- Avoiding repeated jerky movements at the neck.
Related Reading:
5 minute Stretches: Back, Neck pain
5. Shoulder Issues :
(Rotator Cuff Tendonitis and Impingement)
Extensive use of the arms (overhead lifts and falls) can lead to tears in upper-arm tendons or even impingement, painful pressure felt in the shoulder when the rotator cuff and scapula rub together as arms are lifted.
Treatment:
- Shoulder caters to a network of bones, nerves and muscles extending to Collar, spine and limbs. Hence proper medical attention is required in case of an injury.
- Simple pain may recover by adequate rest and application of ice.
- If pain persists beyond 3-4 days, then a physiotherapist can help you resolve the pain and ease the muscles involved for long term recovery.
Prevention:
- Strengthening of rotator muscles around shoulder.
- Avoiding repetitive overhead lifting of shoulder.
- Landing on hands should be done with utmost care and with proper biomechanics.
Had An Injury? Pain that’s not going Away?
Physiotherapy can help!
6. Back :
Dance back pain (Lumbopelvic complex)
Dancing activity generally requires bending, jumping and balancing in ways that the human body is not accustomed to. This is especially true for rigid forms of dance like ballet and pointe. The unique demand placed on dancers explains the high instance of dance back pain.
Movements performed by dancers pose risk to the lower back and hip area (called the lumbopelvic complex). Many forms of dance encourage an anterior pelvic tilt, meaning the pelvis is tilted downward in front and the lower back arch is increased. This compresses spinal joints and the muscles of the lower back. Hip flexor muscles, which run between the thigh and lower back across the hip, are shortened and tensed by this position. Often, tight lower back and hip muscles are coupled with weak gluteus maximus and rectus abdominus muscles. Over time, this muscle imbalance combined with training behaviors can lead to a lack of flexion in the lower back as well as joint problems throughout the lower back and hips causing pain in the back.
Treatment:
- Rest and medical attention will usually help you recover fast.
- Strengthening the core muscles is key to treatment as well as prevention of this situation in the long run.
Prevention:
- Core muscle strengthening exercises.
- Back and hamstrings stretching exercises should be done regularly to maintain flexibility of the muscles and avoid undue strain.
- Spine stability exercises and strengthening of multifidus muscle should be done regularly.
- Bending forwards with twisting should be done cautiously without lending excessive pressure.
- Taking enough rest between sessions allows your body to recover and repair intermittently.
7. Knee :
(Meniscus Knee Tear )
Dance moves usually involve several body movements co-ordinated together at the same time. Twisting the knee along with another movement often forces the feet to remain turned out while the knees have twisted. This movement or losing control when landing a jump can cause a tear in the cushioning knee cartilage.
Treatment:
- Any knee injury must be given proper medical attention.
- In case of tired joint or little pain, resting the joint will help.
Prevention :
-
- Strengthening the core is so crucial to knee health, “It lessens the burden on the knee, so you are not landing with so much force,” says, Dr Saleha (PT) at ReLiva Physiotherapy.
- Also strengthening of hip and pelvic muscles is helpful, as they distribute the weight of your body between the knee and ankle.
In general, precautions such as staying well hydrated, stretching, warming up and cooling down, using proper technique and getting plenty of rest will always help prevent dance injuries.
Rimjhim Dey remarks, “I am a professional dancer, and I started having pain around my knees 3 years ago, I had consulted many orthopedic doctors, but nothing seemed to work. On the request of my doctor, I started physiotherapy as well, which also didn’t help me. 3 years later, the same pain that I had in my knees cropped up again. I then decided to search for a physio and found ReLiva Physiotherapy and Rehab and booked a consult with Dr. Krystle at ReLiva clinic. She was very patient and understanding about my problem and assured me that my pain would subside and I’ll be able to get back to dancing once again. The initial sessions consisted of ultarsound therapy along with exercises. Each session Dr. Krystle challenged me with newer exercises and newer techniques. She made sure to explain in depth about each exercise. She even taught me the importance of taping and now with that, my pain has reduced drastically. We’re done with 9 sessions and I can very happily say that my pain is near to gone!” She profusely thanks her treating physiotherapist Dr. Krystle.
Ms Rimjhim has been highly recommending ReLiva Physiotherapy and has already seen several of her colleagues and friends recover and get back to their dancing career!
An Injury Slowing You Down?
Take Professional Help and Get back to Your Active Lifestyle
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Contributed by Dr Swati Sangolkar (PT). Dr Swati is an experienced Physiotherapist and is a favorite among her patients for her empathy and comfort.
