Pointe-Related Injuries

         Though beautiful, pointe work is very painful. Many injuries result from the force being put on the feet and toes. These injuries can be minor, such as blisters, or major, such as a broken ankle. Other injuries caused by pointe shoes are bunions, ingrown toenails, tendonitis (commonly in the Achilles tendon) , os trigonum syndrome (associated with flexing the foot), osteoarthritis, and stress fractures. Although nonspecific to pointe shoes, knee and hip injuries may result from forcing turnout and repeated bending of the knees (known as plié).