Sleep Disturbances, Sleep-Related Impairments, Dance Exposure, and Injury Risk in Collegiate Dancers
OBJECTIVE: Increased athletic participation affects Sleep Disturbances(SD) in athletes. Following nights with SD, professional dancers noted Sleep-Related Impairments(SRI) (i.e. low speed and concentration). Whether SD and SRI are associated with injury and exposure in collegiate dancers remains unclear Thus, we examined(1) the relationships among SD, SRI, dance exposure hours(DEHr), and injuries and(2) differences in SD, SRI, and DEHr during injured and non-injured months in collegiate dancers over 7 months.
METHODS: Seventy-two dancers completed the PatientReported Outcomes Information System(PROMIS) SD and SRI 8a short forms at the start of every month(September 2019- March 2020) describing their SD and SRI during the past 7 days of the previous month(August 2019-February 2020). A DEHr was recorded as 1 hour of dance participation in class, rehearsal, or performance. Injuries were defined as any condition where the dancer sought medical attention.
RESULTS: Dancers participated in 467.8±45.7 DEHr/dancer, with 14 dancers suffering 18 injuries(IR=0.53/1000-DEHr; 95% CI:0.29-0.78). The dancers’ SD and SRI were higher than the collegiate athletic population(SD: t(71)=26.3, p<0.001; SRI: t(71)=2.60, p=0.01). December SD was negatively related to October, January, and February DEHr(all: r=-0.30, range: p=0.02-0.04). November injuries were negatively related to September, October, December, and January SD(range: r=-0.30 to -0.04, range: p=0.003-0.01). SD and SRI did not differ between injured and non-injured months(SD: t(13)=0.12, p=0.91; SRI: t(13)=0.36, p=0.73; while, DEHr was higher during injured months(t(13)=3.79, p=0.002).
CONCLUSIONS: Although dancers experienced sleep disturbances and sleep-related impairments, inconsistent relationships existed among SD, SRI, DEHr, and injury in collegiate dancers. Despite injury, dancers’ SD and SRI remained similar during injured and non-injured months, while DEHr was higher during injured months. Future researchers should examine relationships among SD, SRI and dance exposure over longer time-periods to clarify if these factors are related and whether sleep affects injury risk in collegiate dancers.
