Musculoskeletal Injuries and Pain in Dancers: A Systematic Review

The dance medicine literature is young and heterogeneous, limiting our ability to draw consistent conclusions. Nonetheless, the best available evidence suggests that musculoskeletal injury is an important health issue for dancers at all skill levels. Better quality research is needed in this specialized area. Future research would benefit from clear and relevant research questions being addressed with appropriate study designs, use of conceptually valid and clinically meaningful case definitions of injury and pain, and better reporting of studies in line with current scientific standards.