Dance Physio and pre-pointe assessments
Northern Beaches Dance Physio to help you put your best foot forward… or up, out or en pointe!
PHYSIOTHERAPY FOR DANCERS ON THE NORTHERN BEACHES
Dancers come in all shapes, sizes, ages, and skill levels, and unfortunately dancers are not immune to injury, even though they are often very well-conditioned to their sport. Physiotherapy for dancers for the most part is not inherently different to traditional sports physiotherapy, however the demands on the body in dancers (even developing and aspiring dancers) is different to sports that involve throwing, catching, and grappling. The flexibility and control in positions that extend out of what regular folk do day to day can put pressure on different structures and cause injury if strength or mobility is not matched to skill level, with some dance styles like ballet, cheer, and hip-hop having higher risks of some injuries.
It takes dancers to know dancers!
Fixio is home to Mason Neal, a APA Titled Sports Physiotherapist who has a history of dancing when he was younger. Mace has been treating primarily cheer and gymnasts, ballet, lyrical and pole, and hip-hop dancers through his career, however dancers from any discipline and at any age and skill level are welcome if there have been injuries or recurrent issues arising while dancing.
In addition to the management of injuries, Mace can assist in developing exercise or conditioning programmes for dancers to assist with identified issues or shortcomings, be it strength, mobility, endurance, cardiovascular capacity, and technique.
THE most trusted NORTHERN BEACHES Dance physios
PRE-POINTE ASSESSMENTS
Passing a pre-pointe assessment acts as a certification of ability and understanding of the basics of ballet, as well as the mobility and flexibility, motor control, and strength required to perform movements that – while relatively simple in flats, become a lot harder once en pointe. Mace will go through the assessment performing the movements with the aspiring dancer, performing movements including:
- Different styles and depths of plié
- Movements through 1st and 5th positions
- Turnout and control in various turnout angles
- Relevées and Retiré et passé en relevé
- Arabesques
- Pirouettes
- Sautées
The assessment also includes assessment of the dancer’s body composition, alignment, and mobility, including:
- Current and previous injury history
- Posture, body curves, and abdominal control
- Ankle and big toe mobility
- Ligament screening of the lower limb
- Hypermobility screening
- Arch position and arch control
HOW LONG IS A PRE-POINTE ASSESSMENT?
Pre-pointe assessments go for 45 minutes to get through the full assessment and go through the results and findings. No one “fails” a pre-pointe assessment in the true sense, but some dancers may need to brush up on some strength or skills to be cleared to progress to their pre-pointe classes. For this reason, it is recommended having a pre-pointe assessment at least 4-to-6 weeks prior to commencement of term in case there are some skills or exercises to develop and be reassessed before term starts so the dancer can be cleared.
It is also recommended that a parent or guardian is present for the assessment so they understand the needs if there is some homework to be done before passing, as well as being best practice for the assessment and treatment of minors in the clinic.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Diagnosing an ACL tear is easy for an experienced knee physiotherapist. There are a few clinical tests that give a very good indication. The gold standard that surgeons use is an MRI of the knee which will clearly outline the ACL injury if there is one. Fixio can assist you in organising an MRI for your knee if required.
The ACL is one of the key stabilising ligaments within the knee. There are 2 “cruciate” ligaments within your knee. They cross each other to form an X, with the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in front and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) in back. The cruciate ligaments control the front and back motion of your knee.
The anterior cruciate ligament runs diagonally in the middle of the knee. It prevents the shin bone (tibia) from sliding out in front of the thigh bone (femur) and provides rotational stability to the knee.
Not only do we know them, we regularly sit in on their surgeries to ensure we are up to date with the latest ACL reconstruction techniques. We can offer you a few options, depending on your wants and needs.
The AFL, NRL and Super Rugby codes all have outlined that 12 months is the earliest that they will return a player to high level sport after an ACL tear and repair.
Previously we were returning players to sport at 9 months after the injury. However the re-injury rate on those players was much higher than players who did a more thorough program over 12 months.