Kinematic analysis of sautés in barefoot and shod conditions

Dancers are exposed to many landings from jumps during class and performance, and repetitive loading has been linked with an increased risk of injury. Little is known about the effect of different dance shoe types on jump landings, and with so many dance shoe designs available to choose from, a thorough exploration is warranted. Dance technique dictates that jump landings be "rolled through the foot," with a toe strike followed by controlled lowering of the ball of the foot and heel. For this study, 3D motion analysis was used to capture the movement of 16 female dancers performing sautés in second position. Lower limb joint kinematics were examined during the landings, both barefoot and in different jazz shoe designs. The results showed that all dancers executed the technique of "rolling through the foot." All jazz shoe designs increased knee and ankle sagittal ROM (p < 0.05) but reduced ankle frontal plane ROM and midfoot ROM in all three planes (p < 0.05). Chorus shoes increased maximum knee flexion by more than 5° during the plié. Jazz shoes restricted midfoot sagittal and transverse plane motion and MPJ sagittal motion compared to barefoot throughout stance phase (p < 0.05). These changes may translate to a reduced capacity to absorb impact or decreased propulsion. Dance jump landings in the jazz shoe designs tested may appear to be heavier due to the greater reliance on knee flexion to absorb impact and less push-off for subsequent jumps.