Age-related progressive increase of lower back pain among male dance sport competitors.

BACKGROUND: Occurrence of musculoskeletal pain in dance sport dancers is often a cause for longer discontinuation of training, which affects the competition results.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the research project was to determine the age-specific pain experience among male dance sport competitors by defining the proportions of pain status of fourteen body regions.

METHODS: The subject sample of 200 male dancers from 44 different countries and with international competitive experience was divided into three subsamples according to age. Three online questionnaires translated into eight world languages were used for data collection: (1) basic data questionnaire, (2) self-estimated functional inability because of pain questionnaire designed for dancers, and (3) health care-related questionnaire.

RESULTS: After examining the 14 topological regions, it was established that dancers most often report pain in the lower back region (53.5%), followed by knee (43%) and toe regions (40.5%). Significant differences were found using the Chi-square test between the groups of dancers of different ages in the prevalence of pain in the lower back (χ 2 = 12.6), shoulders (χ 2 = 9.7), and hip region (χ 2 = 7), with the highest, age-related progressive differences in the lower back region (36.2-54.9-63.4%) so older dancers had more pain. Often reported reasons for discontinuation of training increased with age are overuse syndrome/tendinitis (6.4-15.9-22.5%) and strain (14.9-29.3-31%). Most common causes for longer discontinuation of training are absence of partner (37%), injuries (24%), and overuse syndrome (10%).

CONCLUSION: Lower back pain is propounding health problem in male dancers and increases with age that cannot be resolved by decreasing training intensity. This research reveals that only 28% of male dancers will seek medical help because of occurrence of musculoskeletal pain. Multidisciplinary approach with the aim of long-term health protection and prolongation of dancing careers is required in future studies.