Ballet Pointe Shoe Discomfort: An Exploration Through the use of Real-Time Assessments while Performing en Pointe Movements

Despite the advancement in technology, the ballet pointe shoe remains unchanged and very few research and studies have investigated it. The pointe shoe is still in use today and poses many disadvantages to the ballet dancer's foot health. This research aims to uncover ballet dancers' feet discomfort while dancing en pointe, in the hopes of contributing to the improvement of the future design of pointe shoes. This research brought together a human-centred approach in order to comprehend and gain different perspectives on the topic in a real-time setting. Real-time assessments were obtained using questionnaires, a 3-D feet model apparatus and thermographic imaging in a simulated ballet laboratory. Results demonstrated the relationship of the various methods used and their contribution on examining real-time pointe shoe discomfort and pointe shoe design recommendations.