Community arts engagement supports perceptions of personal growth in older adults.

PURPOSE: The effects of arts engagement on older adults have been well-documented. However, the ways older adults overcome common situational and dispositional barriers to enhance personal growth and well-being are less known. METHODS: Fifty-six community dwelling older adults (71.3 ± 4.6 years) took part in dance, music, or a control workshop two times/week for ten weeks. Participants' personal growth was examined through focus groups and surveys in this mixed-methods study. RESULTS: Focus group and survey results revealed participants experienced personal growth through engaging in the dance and music arms of the experiment. Participants, especially those in arts workshops, described personal growth experiences aligning with four themes: increased social connections, developed new skills, utilized a growth mindset, and used creativity to overcome situational and dispositional barriers to participation. The barriers included musculoskeletal challenges, hearing impairments, and difficulty retaining new information. CONCLUSIONS: The study yielded high adherence and retention rates, and participants reported increased engagement within their communities. Our observations provide avenues for future practitioners and facilitators to create programming that empowers older adults and utilizes participants' ongoing feedback to support access, inclusion, and sense of community.

Sleep, Dance Exposure Hours, and Injury Risk in Collegiate Dancers.

INTRODUCTION: Sleep is essential for athletes and dancers to optimize recovery. Poor sleep negatively affects cognitive function and injury risk in athletes. Increased athletic participation (hours) is associated with decreased total sleep and quality in athletes. Still, information about how sleep is related with exposure hours and injury in collegiate dancers remains unclear. We examined the relationships among the Athlete Sleep Behavior Questionnaire (ASBQ), dance exposure hours (DEHr), and injuries in collegiate dancers over a 7 -month period (August 2019-February 2020). METHODS: Seventy-two dancers (58 female, 14 male; 19.7 ± 1.4 years) completed the 18 question ASBQ at the start of each month (Scale:1 = Never, 5 = Always; Global Scores ≤36 = "good sleep behavior" and ≥42 = "poor sleep behavior"). 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, and we calculated an injury rate for total injuries (IR/1000 DEHr). Pearson correlations examined relationships among ASBQ, DEHr, and injuries (P ≤ .05). RESULTS: Dancers participated in 467.8 ± 45.7 DEHr over 7 months, with 14 dancers suffering 18 injuries (IR = 0.5/1000-DEHr; 95% CI:0.3-0.8). Overall, dancers reported poor sleep behaviors (42.6 ± 6.4). ASBQ scores, DEHr, and injuries in August-October, and December-February were not related, except for a weak positive relationship between ASBQ scores and DEHr in November (r = .28, P = .04). CONCLUSIONS: Sleep, DEHr, and injuries were inconsistently related in collegiate dancers. Sleep and DEHr were only correlated during the month where dancers had 2 performance weeks. While we did not observe this relationship every month, performance weeks may have negatively affected sleep in November. Despite consistent poor sleep, sleep did not seem to negatively affect injury risk during the 7 -month study period. Future researchers should validate the ASBQ in dancers.

Dance, Music, and Social Conversation Program Participation Positively Affects Physical and Mental Health in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

INTRODUCTION: As the world population ages, practitioners use community-engaged interventions to help older adults stay healthy. Engaging in arts programs (e.g., dance or music) reportedly improves physical and mental health, but little research exists examining these effects in community-dwelling older adults. Our purposes were to examine how taking part in 10-week, twice per week community arts programs (dance and music) and control (social conversation) affected physical and mental health in community-dwelling older adults and their perceptions after program participation.
Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 64 older adults over 65 years of age (71.3 ± 4.6 years, 166.9 ± 8.3 cm, 78.1 ± 18.1 kg) took part in community-engaged arts programs: ballroom dance (n = 23), music (ukulele-playing, n = 17), or control (social conversation n = 24), two times per week for 10 weeks. Participants' physical health using the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB; score 0 = worst to 12 = best) and mental health using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA; score = 0 to 30, where less than 26 = normal) were tested three times: 1. before (pre), 2. at the end of 10 weeks (post-1), and 3. 1 month after intervention (post-2). Separate 3 (group) x 3 (time) ANOVAs and adjusted Bonferroni pairwise comparisons as appropriate examined changes across groups and time. Focus group interviews and surveys were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using inductive thematic analyses to examine participants' perceptions.
Results: Across all groups, participants had an 87.8% attendance and an 87.5% retention rate. Participants' SPPB performance improved over time (pre = 10.5 ± 1.4, post-1 = 10.7 ± 1.3, post-2 = 11.3 ± 1.0; p < 0.001), but similarly across groups (p = 0.40). Post-hoc analyses revealed that performance improved from pre to post-1 (p = 0.002) and pre to post-2 (p < 0.001). Participants' cognition improved over time (pre = 26.3 ± 2.8, post-1 = 27.3 ± 2.6, post-2 = 27.5 ± 2.5, p < 0.001), and similarly across groups (p = 0.60). Post-hoc analyses revealed that cognition improved from pre- to post-1 (p = 0.002), and pre- to post-2 (p = 0.001). Participants consistently mentioned increased social engagement as the major reason for participation.
Conclusions: Overall, taking part in community-engaged arts (dance and music) and social conversation programs positively influenced physical and mental health in older adults. Still, as all groups improved equally, the results may partly be due to participants having normal physical and mental function pre-participation and due to them learning the test over time. These study findings imply that providing fun and free community-engaged programs that empower participants to be more engaged can positively influence physical and mental health and promote successful aging in older adults.

Upper-Body Strength Endurance and Power Norms in Healthy Collegiate Dancers: A 10-year Prospective Study.

ABSTRACT: Coogan, SM, Hansen-Honeycutt, J, Fauntroy, V, and Ambegaonkar, JP. Upper-body strength endurance and power norms in healthy collegiate dancers: A 10-year prospective study. J Strength Cond Res 35(6): 1599-1603, 2021-Dance is physically demanding and requires dancers to have adequate upper body (UB), core, and lower-body fitness to perform successfully. 50-85% of dancers suffer injury during a performance season. Although a large number of dancer's injuries are to the lower body, several dance genres (e.g., modern, hip hop, and salsa) use UB motions such as partner lifts and holds, which may result in a higher risk for UB injury. Health care practitioners often use baseline physical performance normative values to determine their clients' fitness levels and when planning training programs to prevent or rehabilitate postinjury. Still, little information exists regarding UB fitness norms among collegiate dancers. Thus, our purpose was to determine UB strength endurance and power norms in healthy collegiate dancers. We recorded UB muscular fitness in 214 healthy collegiate dancers (males: n = 26, 174.0 ± 6.7 cm, 71.3 ± 9.2 kg and females: n = 188, 163.0 ± 6.1 cm, 59.3 ± 6.8 kg) prospectively over a 10-year period (2008-2018) in a dance program that emphasizes modern and ballet dance. For UB strength endurance, we recorded the number of push-ups a dancer was able to perform without forcibly straining or losing form for 2 consecutive repetitions. For UB power, dancers sat with legs outstretched, backs flat against a wall, and threw a 3-kg ball horizontally from their chest as far as possible (distance thrown normalized to body height, *BH). The best attempt of 3 trials was used for statistical analyses. We report descriptive statistics, interquartile ranges (IQRs), and percentiles for both outcome measures. Dancers performed 20.4 ± 10.6 (range: 2-70, IQR: 12-24; males: 32.5 ± 14.4; females: 18.4 ± 8.4) push-ups and threw the medicine ball 1.8 ± 0.5 *BH (range: 45-3.9, IQR: 1.4-2.1; females: 1.7 ± 0.5; males: 2.3 ± 0.7). Overall, in this long-term prospective study, we developed UB fitness norms for dancers. The push-up test and medicine ball throw test are simple, low-tech, and inexpensive to test dancers UB fitness. Although dancers' UB muscular fitness was lower than previous reports among traditional sport athletes, these values may not necessarily indicate problems, as subjects were all healthy collegiate-level dancers. Rather, our findings reinforce the need to develop dance-specific norms so that practitioners can use these values to assess dancers' UB fitness and devise interventions appropriately. These results provide baseline UB muscular fitness norms among collegiate modern and ballet dancers, and further support the notion that differing norms are needed for different sports and dance genres. Specifically, future researchers should similarly develop norms across different dance genres for preprofessional and professional dancers and also examine whether these norms can predict dancers' injury risk or performance.

HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) MEASURES USED IN DANCE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW.

BACKGROUND: Dancers are aesthetic athletes who engage in rigorous physical activity. Researchers have noted that 50-85% of dancers are injured annually. Therefore, clinicians have begun providing healthcare for dancers. As part of standard care, clinicians often use health-related quality of life (HRQoL) measures to examine their patient's physical, mental, and social health. While clinicians have previously used several measures to examine athletes' HRQoL, which measures are used to examine dancers' HRQoL remains unclear. This lack of information may make it difficult for clinicians working with dancers to understand their patients' overall wellbeing and impede their ability to devise appropriate treatment plans. PURPOSE: Review existing literature on HRQoL instruments used to measure dancers' health and wellbeing. DESIGN: Systematic Review. METHODS: Three databases were searched (EBSCO Host, Web of Science, and ProQuest Performing Arts) through March 2019 to identify studies that used HRQoL measures to study dancers. Four studies qualified based on the eligibility criteria. Two reviewers independently scored the studies using (1) the modified Downs and Black Quality Index Tool (mDB) yielding a percentage out of 28 possible points scoring methodological rigor; (2) Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy (SORT) tool (i.e. A, B, or C); and (3) Level of Evidence(i.e. Level 1, 2, or 3). Any disagreement was resolved by discussion and a third reviewer (JPA) was available when consensus could not be reached. RESULTS: All four studies ranged from 46.4-60.7% of mDB scores, B or C strength of recommendations, and Level 2 evidence. Eight different HRQoL instruments were used across the four studies. Although no two HRQoL measures were the same across studies, several measures had variations of similar overlapping constructs, and all measured some mental health construct. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, eight different measures were used to examine dancers' HRQoL. All measures examine some construct of mental health. This finding is important considering the mental aspect of dance. Additional research is needed to examine which measures are suitable to study dancers' HRQoL. Clinicians can use this information to track their dancers' overall wellbeing by noting how HRQoL fluctuates over a season, after injury, and over a dancer's career - overall reducing their dancers' injury risk and enhancing performance. LEVELS OF EVIDENCE: Level 1a.

Using the Selective Functional Movement Assessment for the Evaluation of Dancers' Functional Limitations and Dysfunctions: A Critically Appraised Topic.

Clinical Scenario: Dancers participate in a functionally demanding activity. Athletic participation typically requires the completion of a preparticipation examination, which involves a functional movement screen offering insight into potential injury recognition. The Selective Functional Movement Assessment (SFMA) was created to measure the status of movement-pattern-related pain and dysfunction using regionally interdependent movement to aggravate symptoms and exhibit limitations and dysfunctions. Still, a functional assessment has not been identified to recognize potential dysfunctions or limitations in this population. Clinical Question: Does the use of the SFMA improve overall evaluation of dancers by providing more information on a dancer's overall functional ability and limitations? Summary of Key Findings: The literature search discovered 12 studies and 3 books in which 4 studies were included (2 case reviews, 1 case report, and 1 original research study) based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Three of the studies provided clinical case studies utilizing the SFMA to improve the patient's dysfunctions, whereas 1 study examined the intrarater and interrater reliability of the SFMA. In 3 studies, participants displayed less movement dysfunction. The authors from 3 of the studies agreed the SFMA was a valuable tool for clinicians to use during evaluations, as it provided a more holistic view of the patient, discovering dysfunctional movement patterns that may better identify the source of injury. Clinical Bottom Line: Low-quality evidence, defined as poorly designed case studies, case series, and cohort studies, exist that supports improvement of overall evaluations when utilizing the SFMA. Although the studies were considered low-quality evidence, each included study displayed an effective use of the SFMA as an overall evaluation that correctly identified dysfunctional movement patterns. Strength of Recommendation: Grade C evidence exists that the SFMA contributes to the functional evaluation used in dancers.