Medical Problems of Performing Artists 

About: Medical Problems of Performing Artists is an academic journal published by Science and Medicine, Inc.. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Medicine & Dance. It has an ISSN identifier of 0885-1158. Over the lifetime, 676 publications have been published receiving 9121 citations. The journal is also known as: MPPA.

Musculoskeletal pain and injury in professional orchestral musicians in Australia.

Abstract: This paper reports on the major findings from the questionnaire component of a cross-sectional survey of the musicians in Australia’s eight fulltime professional symphonic and pit orchestras, focusing on performance-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs). METHODS: All musician members of the orchestras participating in this project were invited to complete a self-report survey. The overall response rate was about 70% (n = 377). In addition to general health and experience questions, respondents who reported a current or previous PRMD were asked to report on a range of associated factors. RESULTS: Of the participants, 84% had experienced pain or injuries that had interfered either with playing their instrument or participating in normal orchestral rehearsals and performances. Fifty percent reported having such pain or injury at the time of the survey, mostly with disorders perceived by the musicians to be work-related. Twenty-eight percent had taken at least 1 day off from work for such pain in the previous 18 months. The most common broad sites affected were the trunk (primarily the back), the right upper limb and neck, the left upper limb and neck, and the neck alone, but the relative proportions varied by instrument. Of those musicians who reported at least one episode of pain or injury in the past, less than 50% reported that they had completely recovered. The most commonly cited performance-related factors that had contributed to injury or pain all related to training and playing load (including practice and performance). CONCLUSION: This study provides strong evidence that PRMDs are a common complaint in professional orchestral musicians and identifies a range of factors suggested as contributing to the occurrence or persistence of these disorders. Med Probl Perform Art 2012; 27(4):181–187.

Focal dystonia in musicians: phenomenology, pathophysiology, triggering factors, and treatment.

Abstract: Musician's dystonia is a task-specific movement disorder that manifests itself as a loss of voluntary motor control in extensively trained movements Approximately 1% of all professional musicians develop musician's dystonia, and in many cases, the disorder terminates the careers of affected musicians The pathophysiology of the disorder is not completely clarified Findings include 1) reduced inhibition at different levels of the central nervous system, 2) maladaptive plasticity and altered sensory perception, and 3) alterations in sensorimotor integration Epidemiological data demonstrate a higher risk for those musicians who play instruments requiring maximal fine-motor skills For instruments where workload differs across hands, focal dystonia appears more often in the more intensely used hand In psychological studies, musicians with dystonia have more anxiety and perfectionist tendencies than healthy musicians These findings strengthen the assumption that behavioral factors may be involved in the etiology of musician's dystonia Preliminary findings also suggest a genetic contribution to focal task-specific dystonia with phenotypic variations including musician's dystonia Treatment options include pharmacological interventions, such as trihexyphenidyl or botulinum toxin-A, as well as retraining programs and ergonomic changes in the instrument Patient-tailored treatment strategies may significantly improve the situation of musicians with focal dystonia Positive results after retraining and unmonitored technical exercises underline the benefit of an active involvement of patients in the treatment process Only a minority of musicians, however, return to normal motor control using the currently available therapies