Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review

Musicians are highly vulnerable to musculoskeletal injuries due to the repetitive and sustained physical demands of playing instruments. While neuromuscular control is crucial in stabilising joints and muscles to prevent such injuries, its role in developing and preventing MSIs has received limited...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mário Cardoso, Levi Silva, Elsa Gabriel
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Desafio Singular 2025-07-01
Series:Motricidade
Subjects:
Online Access:https://revistas.rcaap.pt/motricidade/article/view/40962
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850072959439339520
author Mário Cardoso
Levi Silva
Elsa Gabriel
author_facet Mário Cardoso
Levi Silva
Elsa Gabriel
author_sort Mário Cardoso
collection DOAJ
description Musicians are highly vulnerable to musculoskeletal injuries due to the repetitive and sustained physical demands of playing instruments. While neuromuscular control is crucial in stabilising joints and muscles to prevent such injuries, its role in developing and preventing MSIs has received limited attention. In this review, we synthesise findings from studies examining the impact of neuromuscular control and training interventions on MSIs in musicians. Evidence suggests that proprioceptive training, motor control exercises, and dynamic stability drills can enhance joint stability and reduce injury risk, positively affecting performance outcomes. However, much of the existing research is limited by cross-sectional designs. Future studies should focus on longitudinal approaches to better understand the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying these benefits and explore the practical implications of integrating neuromuscular training into musicians’ routines for long-term physical health and career sustainability.
format Article
id doaj-art-662dc5ffa48942bbb2c7929d51799e12
institution DOAJ
issn 1646-107X
2182-2972
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Desafio Singular
record_format Article
series Motricidade
spelling doaj-art-662dc5ffa48942bbb2c7929d51799e122025-08-20T02:46:58ZengDesafio SingularMotricidade1646-107X2182-29722025-07-012110.6063/motricidade.40962Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical reviewMário Cardoso0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3645-9641Levi Silva1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6603-034XElsa Gabriel2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3653-7876Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Bragança, PortugalCenter for Research in Arts Sciences and Technologies, Portuguese Catholic University, Porto, PortugalCenter for Studies in Education and Innovation (CI&DEI) Polytechnic Institute of Viseu, Viseu, Portugal Musicians are highly vulnerable to musculoskeletal injuries due to the repetitive and sustained physical demands of playing instruments. While neuromuscular control is crucial in stabilising joints and muscles to prevent such injuries, its role in developing and preventing MSIs has received limited attention. In this review, we synthesise findings from studies examining the impact of neuromuscular control and training interventions on MSIs in musicians. Evidence suggests that proprioceptive training, motor control exercises, and dynamic stability drills can enhance joint stability and reduce injury risk, positively affecting performance outcomes. However, much of the existing research is limited by cross-sectional designs. Future studies should focus on longitudinal approaches to better understand the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying these benefits and explore the practical implications of integrating neuromuscular training into musicians’ routines for long-term physical health and career sustainability. https://revistas.rcaap.pt/motricidade/article/view/40962neuromuscular controlmusculoskeletal injuriesmusiciansproprioceptionmotor controlinjury prevention
spellingShingle Mário Cardoso
Levi Silva
Elsa Gabriel
Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
Motricidade
neuromuscular control
musculoskeletal injuries
musicians
proprioception
motor control
injury prevention
title Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
title_full Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
title_fullStr Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
title_full_unstemmed Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
title_short Neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians: a critical review
title_sort neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal injuries in musicians a critical review
topic neuromuscular control
musculoskeletal injuries
musicians
proprioception
motor control
injury prevention
url https://revistas.rcaap.pt/motricidade/article/view/40962
work_keys_str_mv AT mariocardoso neuromuscularcontrolandmusculoskeletalinjuriesinmusiciansacriticalreview
AT levisilva neuromuscularcontrolandmusculoskeletalinjuriesinmusiciansacriticalreview
AT elsagabriel neuromuscularcontrolandmusculoskeletalinjuriesinmusiciansacriticalreview