Anterior Tibial Stress Fracture Risk and the Importance of Early Detection in Ballet Dancers
2026 Volume 4 Issue 1 Pages 21-26
Details
2026 Volume 4 Issue 1 Pages 21-26
Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and risk factors for asymptomatic anterior tibial cortex stress fractures in ballet dancers.
Methods: The subjects were 51 ballet dancers (6 males and 45 females) aged 13‒40 years, 102 feet, who participated in a medical checkup for ballet dancers. They had no symptoms or trauma to the tibia. Lateral tibial radiographs were taken for all subjects and diagnosed by an orthopedic doctor.
Age, sex, height, weight, ballet history, practice time, and competition level were asked about using a questionnaire. The dancers were divided into two groups, non-fracture group and fracture group, and compared the relationship between the two groups with respect to other variables using JMP pro 16.
Results: It was found that 28 (54.9 %) dancers 46 feet reported asymptomatic anterior tibial cortical stress fractures. Significantly higher values were observed in the fractures group in terms of height (p＝0.0174), weight (p＝0.0119), and ballet history (p＝0.0308). No significant differences were found in the other variables. Although professional ballet dancers trained significantly longer than amateur ballet dancers, there was no difference between the fracture and non-fracture groups at the competitive level.
Conclusion: The incidence of asymptomatic anterior tibial stress fractures in classical ballet dancers was high, with fracture risk associated more with larger height and weight than with BMI. This suggests that the physical stresses on the tibia may be influenced by the dancers' body size. These findings underscore the importance of early detection through preventive interventions, such as medical checkups, from the early stages of ballet training to mitigate potential injury risks.
