Metatarsal Pain and Plantar Hyperkeratosis in the Forefeet of Female Professional Flamenco Dancers

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to determine the frequency of metatarsal pain and of hyperkeratosis on the plantar forefoot in female professional flamenco dancers, and to determine whether there is a relationship between the two disorders. METHOD: Forty-four female professional flamenco dancers, with a minimum activity of 25 hrs/wk, participated in this cross-sectional study. The presence or absence of metatarsal pain while dancing was recorded, and plantar pressures were measured on a pressure platform, both barefoot and shod with the usual dance shoe. The heel height of the dance shoe was also measured. RESULTS: Of the dancers, 80.7% experienced metatarsal pain while dancing, and 84.1% presented with plantar hyperkeratosis. Plantar hyperkeratosis coincided with the presence of metatarsal pain in 67.04% of the feet studied. The maximum load point in the feet when the dancers were barefoot was located 59.5% in the rearfoot and 40.5% in the forefoot; when dancers wore their specific flamenco dancing shoes, it was located 52.4% in the rearfoot and 47.6% in the forefoot. CONCLUSIONS: Metatarsal pain and plantar hyperkeratosis in the forefoot are common foot disorders in female flamenco dancing. The incidence of the maximum load point being located in the forefoot, and the difference between the results of the tests while shod or barefoot, are both too low to support the idea that the raised heels of flamenco shoes are a major contributing factor for these injuries. Therefore, these disorders may be caused by chronic repetitive trauma suffered during the practice of footwork dancing.

How do sports affect static baropodometry? An observational study among women living in southern Italy

“…We may hypothesize that athletes tend to lean forward or use fore-foot rather than rear-foot surface owing to the specifics of their sports. As mentioned before, several authors reported the same results when they compared athletes practising different sports, athletes practising the same sport, sedentary people, and people with different health problems [2,5,16,[29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36]. In our observations, sedentary participants showed more pressure in the fore-foot than in the rear-foot surface (50.39% and 49.61%, respectively).…”

Las algias como factor predisponente de lesión en estudiantes de baile flamenco

“…Estos resultados son similares a los registrados por Vargas (2009) entre bailaoras profesionales de baile flamenco donde un 27.3% de las participantes manifestaban dolor tanto en pies como en rodillas. Por otro lado, Castilla-Cubero et al (2011) elevan hasta un 50% los casos dolor en rodillas y hasta un 61.45% en pies, mientras que Castillo-López et al (2014) encuentran el 80.7% de las bailaoras profesionales estudiadas manifestaban dolor metatarsal mientras bailaban y el 34.78% a nivel patelofemoral. Esta evidencia sobre los pies y rodillas como zonas más dolorosas está contrastada en otros estudios (Bejjani, 1987;Calvo, Alonso, Pasadolos, & Gómez-Pellico, 1998;Quer et al, 2004;Shybut et al, 2008) donde la acción de zapatear y el uso del zapato de tacón son las primeras causas.…”

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Women’s Foot Health–Related Quality of Life in Ballet Dancers and Nondancers

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