The prevalence of injuries among pianists in music schools in Ireland

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of injuries among pianists in music schools in Ireland. The main objectives of the study were to investigate the anatomical locations of these injuries, the most commonly reported symptoms, and possible risk factors for the development of playing-related injuries. A hand-delivered questionnaire was distributed to 182 students from seven participating music schools. The lifetime prevalence for a playing-related injury, which prevented piano playing for a period of 48 hours or longer, was 25.7%. The wrist was the most common location of injury (36.6%). Pain was the most commonly reported symptom among the respondents. No statistically significant difference in the rate of injury was found between the genders. It was concluded that further research is required into the prevalence of injury and to the predisposing factors of injury so that effective prevention programs can be put in place.