Epidemiological Review of Injury in Pre-Professional Ballet Dancers

Abstract

The objective of this study was to provide an epidemiological review of the literature concerning ballet injuries affecting pre-professional ballet dancers. The literature search was limited to published peer-reviewed reports and involved an extensive examination of Scopus, SPORTDiscus, and CINAHL. The following search terms were used in various combinations: ballet, injury, epidemiology, risk factor, pre-professional, and intervention. Additional citations were located using the ancestry approach. Unlike some other athletic activities that have been the focus of recent intervention research, there is a paucity of intervention and translational research in pre-professional ballet, and sample sizes have often been small and have not accounted for the multivariate nature of ballet injury. Exposure-based injury rates in this population appear similar to those reported for professional ballet dancers and female gymnasts. A preponderance of injuries affect the lower extremity of these dancers, with sprains and strains being the most frequent type of injury reported. The majority of injuries appear to be overuse in nature. Injury risk factors have been tested in multiple studies and indicate a variety of potential injury predictors that may provide useful guidance for future research.

The role of prediagnostic data in injury epidemiology in preprofessional dancers

“…Identifying the anatomical locations most likely to be injured is of the utmost importance for prevention and one of the most described patterns across the literature. Our findings are in line with previous research where the lower extremity is identified as the most affected body region in preprofessional dancers . Still, in what concerns to specific anatomical locations, some differences exist among studies.…”

“…Our findings are in line with previous research where the lower extremity is identified as the most affected body region in preprofessional dancers. 5,6,8,16,[20][21][22] Still, in what concerns to specific anatomical locations, some differences exist among studies. Within dance training formation, and particularly in classical ballet, the technique and the repertoires have differences between genders, evolving according to SkL.…”

“…Within dance science literature, the traditional approach to this issue mainly focuses on risk factors . Nevertheless, identifying injury predictors still remains a challenge with inconsistent results .…”

Detailed injury epidemiology in contemporary dance: a 1-year prospective study of 134 students

“…On the other hand, only reporting time-loss and/or medical attention injuries underestimates the full extent of injury problems 7. About 90% of overuse injuries will not be registered as an injury when focusing on time loss injuries,8 whereas the majority of injuries by preprofessional ballet dancers (54%–85%) appear to be overused in nature 9. We argue that injury surveillance methods should use inclusive injury definitions 7…”

The effect of pointe shoe deterioration on foot and ankle kinematics and kinetics in professional ballet dancers

“…In female dancers, overuse injuries to the lower extremities are the most prevalent (Allen, Nevill, Brooks, Koutedakis, & Wyon, 2016). In particular, the extreme positions of pointe work can lead to overuse injuries of the foot and ankle, which is reported to be experienced by 14-57% of female ballet dancers (Smith et al, 2016;Caine, Goodwin, Caine, & Bergeron, 2015;Leanderson et al, 2001). During pointe work, full ankle plantarflexion causes weight bearing forces to be transmitted from the distal phalanges through the metatarsals and stretching soft tissues of the foot.…”