SOME RECENT RESEARCH INTO MUSICIANS INJURIES

When promising pianist Leon Fleisher publicly discussed his career-stopping focal dystonia in the early 1980s, it opened the floodgates for a number of other musicians who had been hiding their injuries. Performing arts medicine, then in its infancy, also benefitted from Fleisher's brave admission. In the less than 40 years since, scientific research has begun in earnest to learn more about musicians’ injuries, but there's still much that isn’t known. So that when today's musician finds herself in pain, she has to navigate the lack of scientific understanding every bit as much as she does her own mind/body.

A look at some recent research shows us where medical science is at on the treatment of focal dystonia. One recent study reverses previous ones, finding that focal dystonia in musicians is task specific. At the heart of the controversy is whether musicians are affected in their daily lives or only while playing. It matters because researchers are still trying to determine whether it’s caused by repetitive motion or if dystonic symptoms stem from the brain, as is thought with generalized dystonia. So long as the answer remains illusive, so do effective allopathic treatments.

In terms of the prevalence of pain among musicians, a recent review revealed between 29 – 90%, a number that is both high and broad. Yet when it comes to pain that affects playing capacity, the numbers were slightly lower and that's good news. It indicates more players are catching symptoms earlier and able to do something about them. This implies too that there are prevention or early intervention treatments that are successful.

Another interesting recent survey focused on performance anxiety. Many believe that performance anxiety is a key factor in musician injuries. The survey revealed that in classical music, younger students had far more performance anxiety than teenaged students. But amongst popular music students, it was the teens that had the greater performance anxiety. This tells us something about the nature of performance anxiety. In the classical world, it's all about getting into conservatory at a young age. With popular music, however, pressure builds as a player reaches commercially marketability.

These studies matter to the musician because they remind you where the science is. From my experience, by the time you begin to notice the pain, you’ve already been in it for some time. Fear is what keeps you from being more aware, so that by the time you seek treatment; you have little patience for a medical system still in the dark. And yet that's what you face. Even so, there are lots of places to get answers. Most major cities have treatment programs attached to their orchestras and dance companies. Start with them when looking for a local practitioner who can help. Social media is terrific for finding answers from fellow musicians.

In the end though, I found with my repetitive strain injury, that I had to listen to my body and try treatments that made sense to me. It was a journey well worth taking.