Ouch! Five common dance injuries & how to treat them

Dance Magazine, April, 2005 by Linda Hamilton

This scenario happened to Sylvie Rood, a student at the School of American Ballet who began to lose her technique as her bones lengthened, leaving her muscles and tendons lagging behind. Rood said she was determined to "get my passe level with my hip, and it started to hurt. I thought stretching would help but it only made things worse." She now realizes that, until her growth stabilizes, she needs to back off, rather than work harder. As for her pulled hamstring, rest followed by a progressive stretching and strengthening program has helped her recover. Dancing yourself back into shape with this muscle pull is not recommended.

HIP INJURIES

Some dancers are born with perfect turnout--the envy of every ballet dancer. But in some instances, says Dr. Padgett, this large degree of rotation may be due to shallow hip sockets (acetabular dysplasia), which the body attempts to stabilize with a very large acetabular labrum--the supporting rim of hip cartilage. "It's terrific when you're 16, terrific when you're 23, not so good when you're 35," says Dr. Padgett. Why? Because in some cases symptomatic labral tears may represent the first step toward degenerative arthritis and, perhaps, even a hip replacement. So much for great turnout!

Most doctors diagnosed hip pain as tendonitis until 10 years ago, when new MRIs revealed meniscal-like tears in the labrum. This tear, according to Dr. Padgett, is similar to tears in the knee with "catching or intermittent locking after a violent maneuver, like a Broadway performer doing a big fan kick." A more common symptom is a gradual increase in groin pain, causing the dancer to avoid certain movements, like developpe a la second.

Stephanie Walz, a principal dancer with the contemporary Maximum Dance Company in Miami who was initially blessed with excellent turnout, remembers the feeling. "It was like a growing, nagging pain, like when you've overdone things but it doesn't go away." Still, labral tears that heal or become asymptomatic within three months require monitoring rather than surgery. American Ballet Theatre physical therapist Peter Marshall usually advises relative rest along with strengthening exercises. He also recommends avoiding turnout and staying away from anti-inflammatory medication that could mask the pain.

BACK INJURIES

Chiropractor Dr. Lawrence DeMann Jr. in New York says, "The most common problem is when the dancer says 'My back is out!' from joint fixation." Simply put, the back freezes up, causing a localized aching pain over a specific joint that limits movement (rather than nerve pain that radiates down an arm or a leg from a ruptured or degenerative disc.) While it's hard to pinpoint the reason, possible causes for back problems include fatigue, hypermobility (where you can wrap your legs around your head), scoliosis, leg length inequalities, and emotional stress. The most severe cases involve intense spasms in which the muscles contract to protect the joint.

Dr. DeMann treats spasms by freeing up the joint. Marika Molnar recommends physical therapy to reduce inflammation, using alternating heat and cold, which speeds up the exchange of fluids and brings a fresh blood supply to the area. She also gives exercises for the deep abdominal muscles to stabilize the back and pelvic girdle. She counsels against crunches and sit-ups during the acute phase.