Study of Lumbosacral Posture and Pelvic Angle in Odissi Classical Dancers

Abstract

Background: This study was designed to find out the prevalence of backache due to musculoskeletal injuries in Odissi dancers and the influence of lumbar posture and pelvic angle in causing backache. Methods: Study design: This was a cross-sectional and observational study; Sample size: 60 numbers were classified into, Group A: 20 - Normal Individuals, Group B: 20 - Beginner Odissi dancers, and Group C: 20 - Advanced Odissi dancers. Inclusion criteria: 1) Normal individuals between 20 and 24 years of age not trained in Indian classical dance, 2) Odissi dancers trained for <2 years- Beginner’s group, and 3) Odissi dancers trained for more than 10 years - Advanced group. Exclusion criteria: 1) People trained in other forms of dance, other than Odissi, and 2) recent MSK injuries. Assessment of lumbar posture and the pelvic angle performed using flexicurve and pelvic inclinometer. Results: 1) Inter group comparison of mean Pelvic angle (degree): Pelvic angle (degree) was higher in Group 2 in comparison to other two groups and was statistically significant with P < 0.01. Pelvic angle (degree) was also observed to be statistically significant between the Groups 1 versus 2 (P < 0.01) and 1 versus 3 (P < 0.05). 2) Inter group comparison of mean of Lumbar lordosis angle {Theta angle (θ)} using turkey post hoc tests: There was no statistical significance between either groups for theta angle. Conclusion: This study reveals that pelvic angle in the beginner and advanced group of Odissi dancers was altered in comparison to the non-dancer group, though statistically significant needs further evaluation in larger population of Odissi dancers.