New center to prevent dance injuries

LOS ANGELES, March 20 (UPI) -- Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the University of Southern California School of Theatre Dance have joined to help dancers avoid injury.

The Cedars-Sinai/USC Dance Medicine Center will provide informational workshops staffed by a team of experts in dance and movement, sports medicine, orthopedics, surgery and physical therapy.

In addition to workshops and training about how to prevent injuries, the center will also assess, treat and rehabilitate dance-related injuries, particularly foot, ankle, knee and hip injuries.

"Many dance students and professionals sustain injuries caused by high impact, repetitive stress," Dr. Glenn Pfeffer, director of the Cedars-Sinai Foot and Ankle Center and co-director of the Cedars-Sinai/USC Dance Medicine Center, said in a statement. "Often, those types of injuries are preventable; but when they do occur, they require specific types of care."

Most dancers intellectually understand the importance of doing stretching and warm-up exercises to prevent injuries, but many haven't received the best training about how to prevent injuries, according to Margo Apostolos, director of dance at the USC School of Theatre.