Introducing the knee: Anatomy and biomechanics

Authors: Elsa Urmston and Jonathan George on behalf of the IADMS Education Committee 

As dancers, educators and clinicians, we know that knees cope with a lot! Over the last decade or so, the demands placed on the dancer’s body has increased exponentially and ever more complexly. Acrobatic movement is becoming evident and the effect to the joints of the limbs can often mean greater incidence of injury. As Liane Simmel points out “pirouettes on the knees, knee drops, and even a plié in fourth position require particular leg stability and optimal mobility in the knee.”¹ In reviewing the literature, Russell² identifies the lower extremity to repeatedly be the most commonly injured region of the body amongst dancers.