Health condition of female aerobic dance instructors: Subjective Symptoms and Related Factors

Abstract

Aerobic dance has recently become popular in all age groups, but the injuries among full-time and part-time aerobic dance instructors have rarely been pointed out in Japan. In this study the subjective symptoms of 63 female instructors in Gifu area were evaluated through health questionnaire. As a control group, 94 female students of the same age group were also included to compare the prevalence of subjective symptoms. Multiple logistic regression analysis was applied to observe the relation between instructors' symptoms and working conditions. The following results were obtained: 1) Complaints of leg and foot pain and laryngeal discomfort were significantly greater in instructors than in students even after adjusting for age and participation in other sports. 2) A significant positive relation was found in instructors between the frequency of dance lessons (times/wk) and various symptoms (calf pain, foot pain, sore throat, and hoarse voice) after adjusting for age and participation in other sports. These results suggest that leg and foot pain and laryngeal discomfort are characteristic symptoms of aerobic dance instructors. Consideration should be made to adjust the frequency of dance lessons in order to reduce these symptoms. © 1992, Japan Society for Occupational Health. All rights reserved.