Influence of Training Load on the Risk of Injuries in Preprofessional Contemporary Dancers: A Scoping Review

Background: Contemporary dance consists of blending many dance styles and exploring movements that test the physical boundaries of the human form. A preprofessional contemporary dancer can have an intense training load as a performance athlete. Despite intense training, the detailed factors influencing injury are not completely understood. Purpose: To investigate how training intensity, type, and duration can affect the incidence and severity of injury in preprofessional contemporary dancers. Study Design: Scoping review; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines, 6 databases were searched in July 2022, yielding 226 relevant records. The search query used broad terms to capture as many studies as possible: danc* AND contemporary dance AND injury. After initial screening, 111 studies underwent abstract review, resulting in 54 being selected for full-text review. Finally, 9 studies were included in this review, and a qualitative synthesis was conducted. Results: Three themes emerged from the studies in this review. First, there was a lack of standardization in the definitions of injury across the studies. These variations affected the comprehensive assessment of the overall effect of high-level training on contemporary dancers. Second, a high incidence of overuse injuries was reported. Overuse injuries ranged from 20% to 80% of the total injuries that were reported. Third, a sudden spike in training hours during the final weeks leading up to performances resulted in a higher incidence of injuries, which yielded a statistically significant nonlinear correlation across multiple studies. This was confirmed by applying a cubic spline model on the aggregated data, which yielded results of 99.7% of the variance in injury incidence based on training load that were similarly significant (P = .037). Conclusion: Our study showed that despite the lack of standardization in defining "injury" among preprofessional dancers, an inclusive definition encompassing “all complaints” proves most accurate for reporting injury incidence among contemporary dancers, who frequently suffer from overuse injuries. Erratic training schedules—particularly rapid increases in weekly training hours—significantly contribute to heightened injury rates. These data could contribute to the development of preventive guidelines for athletes engaged in high-intensity training.