Effect of Body Size on Pulmonary Function in Male and Female Dancers

Abstract

Introduction: Pulmonary function influence the performance of dancers during their trainings and also their performance stage. Therefore, it is important to investigate the factors that effects the pulmonary function. The effect of body size on resting pulmonary function in modern dancers is unknown but may be related to sex differences. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to determine the effect of body size on resting pulmonary function in male and female modern dancers with the same training levels. Materials and Methods: Thirtyeight (n=18 male; n=20 female) undergraduate modern dancers participated voluntarily and their exercise levels (minimum of 5 days/week, 3 hours/day) and training histories (at least 4 years) were similar. All dancers completed pulmonary function test with a computerized spirometer (MIR, Spirobank, Rome, Italy) according to the American Thoracic Society (ATS) guidelines. Results: There was a significant difference (p < 0.05) between the genders in terms of vital capacity-best (VC-best) and maximum voluntary ventilation-best (MVV-best). The values were significantly higher in the male than in female dancers, and body size had a significant effect, with a small effect size (< 0.2) on the VC-best (F(1,25)= 4.902, p = 0.036) and MVV-best (F(1,25) = 7.864, p = 0.010) values. Conclusion: Although the effect size was small, the effects of body weight, height, and body mass index on the VC-best and MVV-best values were influenced by the fact that male dancers have higher resting respiratory function performance. In a practical contribution, the current results suggest that it is necessary to consider the gender factors when planning and organizing dance training with different models. © JPES.