Chartered Physiotherapists

Specialists in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy

Irish Dancing Injuries

Portobello Physiotherapy is very proud of its long association with Riverdance and more recently the Heartbeat of Home production. For several years we have been treating the injuries of the professional dancers during home based shows in Dublin. Thanks to the outstanding success of Riverdance more and more younger people not just in Ireland but all across the world have taking to learning Irish dancing.

Irish dancing is an extremely athletic form of dance which requires rapid leg movements whilst maintaining a rigid and upright upper body. Irish dance contains jumps and pivoting movements that require a large degree of lower limb strength and core stability. The repetitive nature of the dance and the high forces being absorbed by the feet and lower limb particularly on landing movements leave dancers vulnerable to injury. Forces acting on the lower limb in Irish dancers place immense stresses on the muscles and joints.

The vast majority (about 95%) of Irish dancing injuries are to the lower extremity, and of those lower extremity injuries about 64% are to the ankle and foot. The four most common injuries in Irish dancing include stress fractures to bones in the foot, PFPS, Sever condition, and ankle sprains.

Ready to take the next step?

Learn more about our Patient-Centered Approach to Care or schedule a new patient consultation.