Straub Jessica, Jayaseelan Dhinu J, Honigberg Clara, Scalzitti David A
Alliance Physical Therapy, Baltimore, MD 21211, USA.
Program in Physical Therapy, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20006, USA.
J Clin Med. 2025 Aug 22;14(17):5948. doi: 10.3390/jcm14175948.
Circus arts are gaining popularity across the globe and lifespan. Despite growing participation rates, there is limited high-quality evidence describing the physical therapy evaluation and management of injury within this population. The purpose of this scoping review was to identify and summarize evidence related to the injury characteristics and management of circus artists.
With a research librarian, computerized searches were developed and performed using online databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, SPORTDiscus and Cochrane), gray literature and non-medical databases. Two authors independently voted on article inclusion with a third author blinded to previous voting used in case of conflict. Concept mapping identified five primary themes related to circus injuries and physical therapy treatment. Data was extracted from each article based on content relevant to the classification.
In total, 1095 titles were retrieved from electronic searches, of which 49 studies were included. Overall, 20 studies related to injury characteristics, 10 to risk factors, 9 to each psychosocial variables and interventions, and 8 to screening. Acrobats with required ground elements were the most commonly injured discipline, particularly at the shoulder, ankle and spine. Intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors were identified and numerous psychosocial and lifestyle contributing factors were reported. Literature guiding treatment is limited.
This scoping review mapped and synthesized evidence related to the evaluation and management of circus artist injuries. While injury patterns and characteristics are generally understood, the treatment of this population is poorly described. Clear gaps in screening, injury prevention strategies, and interventions for this group were identified.
马戏艺术在全球范围内以及不同年龄段都越来越受欢迎。尽管参与率不断上升，但关于这一人群损伤的物理治疗评估和管理的高质量证据有限。本范围综述的目的是识别和总结与马戏艺术家损伤特征及管理相关的证据。
与一名研究馆员合作，利用在线数据库（PubMed、CINAHL、Scopus、SPORTDiscus和Cochrane）、灰色文献和非医学数据库开展并进行计算机检索。两位作者独立对文章纳入情况进行投票，如有冲突则由第三位对之前投票不知情的作者参与投票。概念映射确定了与马戏损伤和物理治疗相关的五个主要主题。根据与分类相关的内容从每篇文章中提取数据。
通过电子检索共检索到1095篇文献标题，其中49项研究被纳入。总体而言，20项研究与损伤特征相关，10项与风险因素相关，9项与心理社会变量及干预措施相关，8项与筛查相关。需要地面元素的杂技演员是受伤最常见的类别，尤其是肩部、脚踝和脊柱部位。确定了内在和外在风险因素，并报告了许多心理社会和生活方式方面的影响因素。指导治疗的文献有限。
本范围综述梳理并综合了与马戏艺术家损伤评估和管理相关的证据。虽然损伤模式和特征总体上已为人所知，但对这一人群的治疗描述不足。明确了该群体在筛查、损伤预防策略和干预措施方面存在的差距。
