Back Injury
Dancing Smart Newsletter,
January 30, 2004
Hello everyone!
This week’s question is from Shanty…
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I have a student who is almost 13 and has been dancing with me for over 6 years. (Mostly jazz, some ballet) She also plays ringette in a house league. She recently suffered a back injury during a ringette game and has since been diagnosed with a stress fracture on the right side of her 2nd vertebrae. She is dancing to her limits, and anything she can do from a dance point of view to help (she is in physio and getting bone scans) and anything I can do as her instructor.
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First, I want to tell you I had no idea what ringette was, when I first read your question. After doing some research I found out that Ringette is a sport for females, similar to hockey, which has only been around since 1963. It is growing by leaps and by bounds, and I think I read somewhere that they were petitioning to have it added to the Olympic competition.
Finding out a little bit about Ringette helped me to understand how she might have been diagnosed with a stress fracture at a vertebrae. You didn’t mention whether it was the second thoracic (ribcage area) or second lumbar (low back) vertebrae. It is more common to have stress fractures in the lumbar area which are called spondylolysis.
The general rule with stress fractures is rest first and foremost, until the bone growth has begun. Your student is probably very aware of the type of movement that bothers her, and of course should not go into the range of movement that bothers her. A common example of this might be bending backwards, similar to a cambre back.
If you do find that it is the backwards movements that bother her the most you can work with her to develop more abdominal strength to support those movements. Find out specifically where the fracture is so you can appropriately help her support that area. Probably this will be the focus of her physical therapy. The exercises will help to strengthen the weaker muscles, but you as her dance teacher will help her bring that strength into her movement, which is essential!
Those adolescent years can be challenging to our dancers and athletes when the bone growth is occurring at such a rapid rate. I remember reading research that showed that bones can grow unevenly, and at rates as much as 1/4 inch over night. (I hope I’m remembering that correctly, I heard a physician who was speaking to my functional anatomy class stating that, and it made so much sense as I thought about teenagers tripping over their feet and becoming uncoordinated overnight)
I’m glad to hear that she is getting physical therapy and follow up bone scans. It is important to err on the side of caution with these young dancers. Encourage her to follow a good diet, plenty of vegetables and protein to help support the bone growth and regeneration.
Hopefully, this injury will only side line her for a while and give her time to work on other areas in her training, both in the dance class and on the ice.
Warm regards,
Deborah
"Education is the key to injury prevention"
DeborahVogel@thebodyseries.com