Female Dancers and Lower ACL Injuries

Both Professional and Collegiate Dancers Report Lower Incidence

Aug 10, 2009

A number of theories exist as to why female dancers have a lower incidence of ACL injuries than their peers who compete in traditional sports.

Dance sports medicine is an emerging field in sports medicine. Along with researching how to prevent and treat injuries unique to dancers, researchers can learn how female athletes competing in traditional sports can benefit from the training undertaken by dancers. Specifically, with the trend of ACL injuries on the rise in women athletes, why is the incidence of ACL injuries so low in female dancers?

A recent study published in Athletic Therapy Today (July, 2009), researched the incidence of ACL injuries in 145 collegiate female dance students. Of the 145 dancers, only two participants (1.38%) reported ACL injuries. This statistic is significant because the average percentage of female athletes who sustain ACL injuries is 6%-8%.

Because many ACL injuries are sustained through non-contact, the movements of dancers can then be compared to the movements of traditional sports in which ACL ligaments are torn. The predominant cause of ACL injuries are a “plant and twist” and a "sudden stop" mechanism. Dancers perform many skills in which there are both single and double leg landing movements and quick changes in direction.

Strong Co-contraction of Quadriceps and Hamstring Muscle Groups

One possible factor contributing to the lower incidence of ACL injuries in dancers is the ability for female dancers to have a greater capability for muscle co-contraction with the quadriceps (front of the thigh) and hamstring muscle (back of the thigh) groups (Athletic Therapy Today, July, 2009). Previous research has reported that dancers have a different neuromuscular activation pattern than other athletes.

Because weakness in the hamstring group has been a possible cause of the increased incidence of ACL injuries in female athletes, the ability to produce a strong co-contraction with both muscle groups may be a key factor in protecting the ACL. A strong co-contraction between the quadriceps and hamstring muscle group can protect the knee by producing a strong stabilizing effect during a landing or qiuck change in direction maneuver.

If the muscles around the knee are strong and tight, the muscles will have the ability to protect the ligaments within the knee by becoming the primary stabilizers of the knee. The muscles can then protect the ligaments and absorb the forces generated by the mass and momentum of the body during a landing or sudden stop..

Support for Balance Training

Another factor that may help dancers protect their anterior cruciate ligaments is their focus on balance training. It is well published that the current trend in programs to prevent ACL injuries in female athletes is balance training. Traditional athletes tend to have a focus on skill acquisition during their practice times whereas balance training is inherent in the training of a dancer. Balance skills are required early on in dance training and are a focus throughout a dancer’s training.

More research is needed on studying the biomechanics and neuromuscular activation of dancers as compared to traditional sport female athletes to further identify the specific factors that contribute to protecting anterior cruciate ligaments in dancers. This type of research can provide additional resources and support for the protection of anterior cruciate ligaments in all female athletes.

The copyright of the article Female Dancers and Lower ACL Injuries in Knee & Joint Injuries is owned by Terry Zeigler. Permission to republish Female Dancers and Lower ACL Injuries in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.