| search by category |
Measurement of functional capacity in dance
Liederbach, Marijeanne MSPT, MSATC, Harkness Center for Dance Injuries, NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York, New York, United States; Hagins, Marshall PhD, PT, Long Island University Department of Physical Therapy, Brooklyn, New York, United States; Welsh, Tom PhD, Florida State University Dance Department, Tallahassee, Florida, United States; and Gamboa, Jennifer DPT, OCS, Body Dynamics, Inc, Arlington, Virginia, United States
Purpose
The absence of a universally accepted conceptual scheme to classify functional capacity in dance has been problematic. It has resulted in a dearth of information about optimal fitness for safe participation in dance and about the natural history of various injuries and length of time needed to recover full function after injury for return to work as a dancer.1,2 Furthermore, it has left a void in the realm of injury reporting with respect to documentation of non-time-loss injuries.
In 2001, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a major revision of its International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) to provide consistent language for healthcare providers when describing function and to provide a scientific basis for understanding health outcomes and determinants.3 The IADMS Research Committee, through its Standard Measures Consensus Initiative, has recommended that IADMS join the WHO?s international effort to standardize language and rating scales for the measurement of function.
Approach
The history, theoretical framework and nomenclature of the ICF will be reviewed. Case studies will be presented to give the audience practical opportunity to classify dancer functional capacity according to the WHO?s criteria in the context of a movement category system originally developed by Nicholas et al4 and modified for dance.2 This method used alone or in combination with values describing time lost from injury can quantify in a simple and standardized manner the level of functional capacity possessed by a dancer.
Conclusions
Standardizing the assessment of function in dance will be useful in clinical and research contexts. WHO-based measurements provide an alternate means by which to define injuries apart from time lost. Non-time-loss injuries have been reported to be three to five times more common than time-loss injuries and to require as many or more treatments to restore function.5
References
Welsh TM. A primer on measuring dancer capacities. JDMS 2003: 7(1), 5-9.
Liederbach M. Screening for functional capacity in dancers: designing standardized, dance-specific injury prevention screening tools. J Dance Med Sci 1997: 1(3), 93-106.
Jette AM. Toward a common language for function, disability and health. Phys Ther 2006: 86(5), 726-734.
Nicholas JA, Grossman R, Hershman E. The importance of a simplified classification of motion in sports in relation to performance. Orhop Clin North Am 1977: 8(3), 499-532.
Powell JW, Dompier TP. Analysis of injury rates and treatment patterns for time-loss and non-time-loss injuries among collegiate athletes. J Ath Tr 2004: 39(1), 56-70.