Dance Injuries

Dancers can experience multiple musculoskeletal injuries, from ankle sprains to spine stress injuries. In comparison to athletes in other sports, dancers have very specific requirements in terms of both flexibility and strength, which are critical for them to perform their best. Whenever possible, we can advise on training modifications that keep you dancing whilst allowing your injury to recover.

Understanding and identifying joint and muscle imbalances and taking active steps to address these are critical to treating injuries and building resilience. At Restore Physiotherapy, we work with dancers of all levels to help them recover from their injuries and prevent recurrence. 

Whether you’re a junior ballet dancer or an adult contemporary dancer, we can assess and treat your injury, modify your training program and get you back performing at your best.

Are you a young, aspiring ballet dancer who’s progressing to pointe work? Our team at Restore can help you assess your readiness and provide the right exercises and advice to prepare you for this significant step.

Our pointe readiness assessment can be completed in one session, with six assessment tasks: calf strength, calf endurance, ankle mobility, foot mobility, pelvic stability and balance. Our team can also tailor individualised programs and treatments to help you work towards pointe readiness. 

We recommend that young dancers be at least 12 years old, have been dancing for 2-3 years, and currently participate in 2 hours of ballet per week to undergo our assessment. 

Scenario

A 16-year-old contemporary dancer sought treatment at Restore Physiotherapy for lower back pain. She had four dance performances scheduled over two consecutive days in the upcoming week. The pain had developed due to intensive rehearsals and was impacting her ability to perform at her usual level. 

Solution 

In the short term, we delivered three dance physiotherapy sessions that included joint mobilisations, soft tissue massage, and home-based mobility exercises. Taping was applied and taught on the morning of the first performance, along with recommendations on how to recover between performances. 

After the event, she had ongoing rehabilitation that focused on addressing strength deficits. She attended small group (1:3) Clinical Pilates sessions. She attended this once a week for 12 weeks to improve her strength deficits and regain her confidence.

Results

The dancer successfully performed in all four shows without aggravating her symptoms. At her 3-month follow-up, she reported no lower back pain and she reported improved strength, flexibility and confidence.