Theatrical Patients in a Performing Arts Practice

Alice G. Brandfonbrener
From: Medical Problems of Performing Artists: Volume 14 Number 1: Page 21 (March 1999)

Abstract: Musicians and dancers are routinely treated by specialists in performing arts medicine, but other performing artists, namely, those in the theater, have not received significant specialized medical attention. This paper reviews a five-year experience in a busy performing arts clinic in which actors and other theatrical workers were part of the patient base. During 1992-1996, a total of 1,745 patients were seen. Of these, 325 (19%) were theatrical patients, of whom 262 were actors and 63 were other theater personnel. Although they sought care for a wide range of medical problems, the majority of these were infectious diseases and musculoskeletal injuries. A case is made for the appropriateness of specialized care for theatrical patients due both to the occupational nature of many of their complaints and to the need for special consideration to accommodate rehearsal and performance schedules

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