This new infosheet produced from a collaboration between The Healthier Dancer programme and Foundations for Excellence is a welcome addition to the existing information that is available about joint hypermobility. On one hand, joint hypermobility is loved because it allows greater than the average range of movement in the joint. On the other hand, hypermobility in dancers needs careful attention and support when training to realise potential and also avoid injury.

The infosheet offers teachers very useful information about generalised hypermobility and also Joint Hypermobility Syndrome or HMS. There is a five point questionnaire that can be used as an indicator of the presence of hypermobility. Information about the Brighton scoring system incorporating the 9-point Beighton Scoring System for Joint Hypermobility Scale is also included.

Guidance is offered relating to posture, strength and control as well as proprioception and imagery. The issue of stretching in hypermobile dancers is raised together with the challenges of strengthening which takes longer in hypermobile dancers. Other topics touched on include endurance and pyschological implications of missing classes through injury (which in HMS can take longer to heal) – a very important issue for dance teachers to consider when teaching students with HMS.

Download a PDF file of the full infosheet below:

Managing Joint Hypermobility Syndrome – a Guide for Teachers