Dance injuries in young dancers: what parents should know

Casey has a large number of dance schools, and dance is one of the highest-participation activities for young people in the area. It also has an injury profile unlike any team sport: highly repetitive, performed at end-of-range, and often trained year-round without an off-season.

Hips and the turnout demand

Turnout is the defining requirement of classical dance, and dancers who do not have the available hip rotation will find it elsewhere — usually by rolling the feet or rotating the lower back. That compensation is where a lot of hip and low back complaints come from. Assessing actual hip range is the first step. See hip and pelvic pain.

Feet and ankles

Ankle sprains, achilles irritation and forefoot pain are common, particularly with pointe work. Pain in the front of the ankle when rising, or a persistent ache in the ball of the foot, are worth looking at rather than pushing through — our foot pain page covers the common presentations.

Growth-related pain

During growth spurts, the tendon attachments at the knee and heel are more vulnerable than the muscle itself. Pain at the front of the knee or the back of the heel in a 10 to 14 year old dancer is often growth-related rather than an injury, but it should be assessed rather than assumed — some of these need specific load management for a period.

The back

Repeated extension work loads the lumbar spine, and back pain in an adolescent dancer that is worse with arching and better with rest deserves a proper look. Persistent, extension-related low back pain in a young athlete is one of the presentations where we have a lower threshold for imaging.

What to do

Pain that lasts more than a week, changes how they dance, or wakes them at night warrants assessment. We treat dancers across Casey and will always give you an honest view on whether a break is genuinely needed or whether load can be modified instead.

What a first appointment looks like

We start with what actually happened and what the demands of your sport are, then assess the injured area alongside the joints and muscles above and below it — because the painful structure is often not the limiting one. You get a diagnosis, a realistic timeframe, and a plan that accounts for your training and match schedule rather than assuming you can stop. If we think you need imaging or another practitioner, we will say so at that first visit rather than after six sessions.

Booking in

We are at 5/6-8 Langmore Lane, Berwick, with street parking directly outside and same-week appointments most weeks. Initial consultations are 60 minutes and $149, with private health rebates processed on the spot via HICAPS. No referral is required, and we also work with WorkCover, DVA and Medicare care plans where they apply.

Book an initial consultation at RISE Sports & Spinal in Berwick. Clear diagnosis, hands-on treatment, and a plan that actually gets you better.