DD10 - knee pain - dance overuse?

[charabby]

So, my dd has danced since she was three and has been complaining of knee pain recently.

She takes dance three nights a week - nearly 2hr Monday, 45 min Tuesday, 60 min Thursday - ballet, jazz, hip hop.

She's been talking about the knee pain for at least two weeks now and today she said it was "really really bad". I asked her to rate it on a scale of 1 to 10, and she said '9'. Her behavior indicates more of a 5 or 6, though, b/c she was playing etc. and she's a drama queen.

Anyway, so here's my question, finally. I'm going to take her in to the doctor and get it checked out, but what can I do for her in the meantime? She is putting warm wash clothes on them tonight b/c she said that helped when she tried it before, but she hates taking medicines and said she didn't need Tylenol.

And also, is that too much dancing for a 10yo?

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

Just to be safe, you should probably get it checked out. It could save a lot of headache down the road with further knee injuries, etc.

TOV (who has knee problems from childhood injuries)

 

[janette]

Not really too much dance but you might ask the teachers about the stretches etc that they are doing. There are some things that if done incorrectly can cause problems. Ibuprofen is better on swelling joint pains than Tylenol.

You can also ask at the studio, it is common for dance instructors to have some background in sport medicine. The co-director of my DD's dance studio has a degree in sports medicine and is one of the first people we ask with muscle / aches etc. My 14yo DD has some problems with her feet but due to extremely high arches, she averages 15+ hours of dance a week. She'd probably have issues even without dance and hard to say if the dance makes it better since it helps build the other muscles in her feet.

Do have a Dr check for anything else in regard to the pain, often a good pain gauge is if they are waking at night in pain. If that happens I'd have her at the Dr pretty quickly.

 

[va32h]

And also, is that too much dancing for a 10yo?

That would be a good question for the doctor. My dd skates, and we had a discussion with her dr before she started skating "seriously" to discuss the pace we should take, the risks to her developing body when learning multiple jumps, etc.

In general I wouldn't think that an hour or two of physical activity a day is harmful - no one would think twice if a child played outside for an hour or two each day. But there might be some particular repetitive moves in dance that might aggravate certain joints or muscles, etc.

Definitely a question for a doctor!

 

[Blondie]

Until she sees a doctor, try RICE; rest, ice, compression, and elevation.

I only know because I'm currently going through some knee problems of my own!

 

[Davids-Coco]

I had cronic issues because of dance (which flare now that I am pregnant and my ligaments are stretching) and use to teach ballet. I second the RICE. A bag of frozen vedgies works really well because it will form to her knee's shape. Just make sure to put a towel between the bag and skin.

Now, is she dancing too much? I don't think so... at least not necessarally. It *may* be an issue with the studio. Are their floors sprung? Are the teachers correcting her? Is she forcing her turn out in ballet (which most kids do from the knee, when turn out comes from the hip)? If the floors are okay and the teachers are really doing their job... then maybe she is doing too much. Make sure she is getting enough calcium and eating a good, balanced diet. This can lead to injuries.

One last note, if the dr says to do something (like not dance for a month), make her do it. She may not like it, but it will allow it to heal properly. If she doesn't, she is at risk for a re-injured knee.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

icing would help better than warmth.

 

[chris1gill]

My son had a recent problem like this with his knee.... he does karate & he had hyper-extended it... anyhow, we kept icing it after karate, but you know what?? My MIL told me to put Theragesic on it, finally I did... actually I did it twice & you know what??? His knee was fine after that.... Course now he's having ankle problems, I don't know, growing pains? He does karate twice a week at an hour a time, but up until a few months ago he went 4 or 5 nights a week for an hour a time, so I don't think your DD is dancing too much... as long as she's stretching out beforehand, she should be fine, but I'd try the theragesic... it's weird how it helped like it did!

 

[Karel]

Where is the pain? In the knee or below it or above it?

My son has a lot of knee pain when he was that age, from basketball and soccer. There are several different conditions that children can develop. One is Osgood-Schlatter Disease. He also had a problem from the up and down motion of basketball.

 

[daisyduck123]

I would rest that knee & not let her dance until it gets checked out.

My DD11 swims 5-6 days a week on a year-round competitive swim team (has for 3 years).

This past Dec. she really began complaining about her shoulder. Well, we couldn't get an appt. with the sports medicine doctor until the 1st week of Jan....now she's been in physical therapy twice a week ever since. The doctor said it would not have been so bad if we had come in last March --when she made it to the state championships and really started training hard. She then complained once or twice about her shoulder, that was it.

Whenever her shoulder hurts, the doctor said to take ibuprofen. This is along with her other treatments.

Now we don't swim as much either...which is killing DD.

 

[mudnuri]

icing would help better than warmth.

Depends on the person, ice does help inflamation but some bodies react better to warmth. Mine- is one of them. Once the swelling is gone from an injury, I use heat...ice freezes up the injury to me, and makes it hurt more.

Please get it checked out- my brother had 'growing pains' growing up in his knees- well the doc always said it was growing pains- when in reality it was osgood slaughter disease (spelled that wrong). he is today 33 and dealing with knee pain almost daily because of this disease...

I had a serious ACL injury in high school (field hockey- cleat stopped, knee kept moving) and was out of commission for almost 6 weeks. My mom was attament that the doc said 6 weeks, I didnt do anything strenuous for 6 weeks. Now, I have minor pain if I do too much, but thankfully she had the smarts to really make me mad and stick by what the doc said. I did have surgery for my tear, but she made sure after I wore my brace etc.

Good luck to your DD and I dont think dancing that much is too much, but check the floor like a previous poster said. When I was little i danced 4x a week for an hour. Starting in 6th grade I played 3 sports a year (plus swam on the summer team) and we had 2 hour practice a night...

Brandy

 

[luvflorida]

DD15 dances 10 hours a week, and 13/14 hours a week before dance competitions. This doesn't include dancing at the competitions or the dancing she does at home. She hardly ever seems to walk throughout the house, instead she's constantly stretching or on her toes or spinning. She competes in jazz, hip hop, and lyrical. She takes classes in jazz, hip hop, lyrical, Ballet technique, Ballet Pointe, two conditioning classes, and modern dance.

She has only been dancing for three years, two of them on a competition team. She must have natural ability because she is dancing with girls who have been dancing for 10-13 years. Anyway, the part I find the most distressing are the aches and pains and occasional injuries. It happens to all of the girls and the most frequent complaints are about knees, ankles, hips, and back.

The difficult part is determining if the aches and pains are something that should be seen by a doctor, or something that just requires rest and heat or ice. I've taken my daughter to the doctor for knee complaints and hip complaints. They usually take x-rays or ultrasounds, but they've never really found anything wrong. I've heard other parents say they've taken their daughters to doctors, chiropractors, etc. They've had all kinds of tests done, but there usually isn't a specific cause or specific treatment, other than overusing a muscle or joint.

When my daughter has any aches or pains, she usually finds that soaking in a nice, hot bath, (we have a whirlpool/jet tub that she loves), helps a lot. Also, taking Advil and using heat or ice and just resting.

My biggest worry is that someday she may really injure herself and not be able to dance, and that would just devastate her. Dance is her life.

There have been girls who have stopped dancing because of injuries, so it is a big concern for everyone. I don't know if any of this helps you with your daughter. I just wanted you to know that I understand how confusing it is as far as what to do for their pain. Of course, everyone is different and I'm not saying don't take her to the doctor. When my daughter first started dancing, I ran her to the doctor every time she complained of any type of pain. Now, I usually find that by using the methods I've mentioned, she seems to come through it fine. Of course, if I thought it was something serious, or if my daughter or any of her dance instructors thought it was serious, I'd have her at the doctor's office immediately.

 

[golfgal]

Ice is generally used for acute injuries, usually 48 hours old or so, then usually the treatment is to alternate ice and heat for a few more days and then heat is ok. The reason heat isn't used right away is because it will promote swelling in torn tissues, like a sprained ankle for example. Once those tissues start to heal and they are no longer bleeding (bruises) then the ice/heat/ice or heat will help get the excess blood (bruises) out of the area.

As for your DD's problem, is she growing right now? That could account for the pain. If you take her to a dr, I would recommend taking her to a sports medicine clinic. You could make an appointment with an athletic trainer to start, the could evaluate the injury and suggest a proper treatment course. If she needs to see an orthopedic dr, they will have that done (they usually have them on staff at sports medicine clinics).

Does she LIKE dance? Is this maybe her way of telling you she doesn't want to do dance anymore?

 

[Disney Ella]

My DD, also 10 and into dance, has knee pain from Osgood Schlatter's disease. Because at her age she is going through rapid bone growth, the dancing stresses the knee joint. The treatment for Osgood Schlatter's is rest and ice. The first time this flared up, she could barely walk. She had to stay out of dance and gym for two weeks, use ice and motrin, and do leg exercises when she was able. It still flares up after dance sometimes, but usually ice and Motrin take care of it. The doctor says that when she stops growing she'll outgrow Osgood Schlatter's.

I hope you figure out what the problem is and your daughter starts feeling better soon.

 

[hemispheredancer]

My DD11 figure skates. She has had an injury on both knees. She has been seen by her sports med doc and has come to the conclusion of juvenile osteochodrosis. She usually has a few flare-ups during the summer since that is when she trains the hardest. Her best relief comes from Naprosyn (only as needed) and rest. There is one spot just below the kneecap that seems to more bothersome. Be sure to get it checked out ASAP to prevent further injury.

 

[tinkamom]

My DD, also 10 and into dance, has knee pain from Osgood Schlatter's disease. Because at her age she is going through rapid bone growth, the dancing stresses the knee joint. The treatment for Osgood Schlatter's is rest and ice. The first time this flared up, she could barely walk. She had to stay out of dance and gym for two weeks, use ice and motrin, and do leg exercises when she was able. It still flares up after dance sometimes, but usually ice and Motrin take care of it. The doctor says that when she stops growing she'll outgrow Osgood Schlatter's.

I hope you figure out what the problem is and your daughter starts feeling better soon.

My DD also had this and a dislocated knee cap at that age. I also was concerned because she danced over 10 hours a week but the Dr. assured me that it wasn't the dance that cause her injuries its was the rapid grow that girls go through at that age. He said it was common in adolescent girls. I would bring her to a DR as soon as possible because my DD complained occasionally off and on for weeks and then her knee totally lock up! We ended up in the ER!

 

[charabby]

I'm going to take her in, but now I'm leaning towards growing pains. In fact, as soon as that was mentioned a lightbulb went off for me. My dh had horrible problems with growing pains at about the same age and she has been growing a lot. I will insist she take some Ibuprofen for a few days, etc. Thanks for all the advice. Hopefully, this will pass quickly for her - I hate for her to be hurting.