Assessing Hypermobility in Dancers

Abstract

Many dancers have extreme joint mobility that can be an asset in the profession but may also put them at risk for injury. This article offers a brief review of the pathology, prevalence, and biomechani-cal implications of hypermobility as well as descriptions and evaluations of various mobility tests. A generally accepted tool for assessing hypermobility in dancers has yet to be developed but will probably need to distinguish acquired from inherited hypermobility and take into account different types and levels of dancer training.