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. 2016 Sep 26;134(6):0.
doi: 10.1590/1516-3180.2016.0077310516. Online ahead of print.

Frequency of pain and eating disorders among professional and amateur dancers

Maria Angélica Kurpel Diogo  1 , Gabriel Gomes de Oliveira Ribas  1 , Thelma Larocca Skare  2
Affiliations

Frequency of pain and eating disorders among professional and amateur dancers

Maria Angélica Kurpel Diogo et al. Sao Paulo Med J. .

Abstract
in English, Portuguese

Context and objective:: The pursuit of perfection can cause anxiety and lead dancers to exceed their physical limits. The aim here was to evaluate the prevalence of pain symptoms and eating disorders among professional and amateur dancers.

Design and setting:: Observational cross-sectional study; Curitiba, PR, Brazil.

Methods:: Data on 150 professional and non-professional practitioners of ballet, jazz and street dance were collected through specific questionnaires: Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form (BPI-SF), Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26), Bulimic Investigatory Test Edinburgh (BITE) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-T-6 (STAI-T-6).

Results:: Pain was observed in 58.6% of the sample, equally between professionals and amateurs (P = 0.19). Ballet dancers had more lower-limb pain than the other groups (P = 0.05). EAT-26 showed a tendency towards more eating disorders among the amateurs (P = 0.06). Higher risk of eating disorders was found among ballet dancers (P = 0.004) and jazz practitioners (P = 0.02) than among street dancers. Amateurs had more symptoms on the BITE scale (P < 0.0001), more pain (P = 0.002) and higher anxiety (P < 0.0001). Eating disorders were more common among females (P = 0.01) and singles (P = 0.02). Professionals were more satisfied with their own body image than amateurs (P < 0.001).

Conclusions:: Pain symptoms were found in almost half of the sample, equally among professionals and amateurs as well as between the three dance styles. Female and singles had more eating disorders. Those with eating disorders had higher levels of pain and anxiety.

CONTEXTO E OBJETIVO:: Buscar a perfeição pode causar ansiedade e levar bailarinos a ultrapassar seus limites físicos. O objetivo foi avaliar a prevalência de sintomas dolorosos e distúrbios alimentares entre bailarinos profissionais e amadores.

TIPO E LOCAL:: Estudo transversal observacional; Curitiba, PR, Brasil.

MÉTODOS:: Dados de 150 praticantes profissionais e não profissionais de ballet, jazz e street dance foram coletados por meio de questionários específicos: Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form (BPI-SF), Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26), Bulimic Investigatory Test Edinburgh (BITE) e State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-T-6 (STAI-T-6).

RESULTADOS:: Encontrou-se dor em 58,6% da amostra, igualmente entre profissionais e amadores (P = 0,19). Praticantes de ballet tinham mais dor em membros inferiores que os demais (P = 0,05). No EAT- 26, encontrou-se uma tendência para mais transtornos alimentares entre os amadores (P = 0,06). Alto risco para transtornos alimentares apareceu naqueles que praticavam o ballet (P = 0,004) e jazz (P = 0,02) mais do que street dance; amadores tinham mais sintomas no BITE (P < 0,0001), mais dor (P = 0,002) e ansiedade (P < 0,0001). Transtornos alimentares foram mais comuns em mulheres (P = 0,01) e solteiros (P = 0,02). Bailarinos profissionais estavam mais satisfeitos com sua imagem corporal do que amadores (P < 0,001).

CONCLUSÕES:: Encontrou-se sintomatologia dolorosa em quase metade da amostra, tanto em bailarinos profissionais como amadores, bem como nos três estilos de dança. Mulheres e pessoas solteiras tiveram mais transtornos alimentares. Aqueles com distúrbios alimentares tinham níveis mais elevados de dor e ansiedade.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None

Figures

Table 1.
Table 1.. Comparison of epidemiological data and dancing habits between professional and non-professional dancers
Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Most common sites affected by musculoskeletal pain among dancers (n = 150).
Table 2.
Table 2.. Comparison of pain according to BPI-SF (Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form) between professional dancers and amateurs
Table 3.
Table 3.. Comparison of dancers with high and low risk of eating disorders according to the EAT-26 questionnaire (Eating Attitudes Test-26)
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Comparison of anxiety scale (STAI-T-6) results among dancers with high and low risk of eating disorders (P < 0.0001; Mann-Whitney).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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