The VOICE of UPMC Shadyside Winter 2022–2023

Caring for the Athlete Artists

“Dancers put a tremendous amount of strain on their bodies, so we put a lot of effort into injury prevention,” says Dr. MaCalus V. Hogan

When I was very young, I found myself enthralled by the things that dancers could do with their bodies,” says Garfield Lemonius, MFA, dean and artistic director of Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts. “I loved how dancers made movement mean something. I knew I had to be part of that world of dance as an expressive art form, a way of telling stories through this universal language of humanity.”

Mr. Lemonius could hardly have chosen a more physically demanding artistic profession, believes MaCalus V. Hogan, MD, MBA, the nationally known orthopaedic surgeon who in 2022 was appointed chair of the University of Pittsburgh Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and chair of Orthopaedic Surgery for UPMC. In his new role, Dr. Hogan succeeds the late, legendary Freddie Fu, MD, a sports medicine pioneer.

A foot and ankle specialist who regularly appears on the lists of the “Best Doctors in America,” Dr. Hogan is, like Dr. Fu, enamored of dance. He is the main foot and ankle physician for Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts, one of the top programs of its kind in the nation. 

Dr. Hogan notes that approximately 50 percent of dancers’ injuries occur in the foot or ankle.

“My mentor was Dr. William Hamilton, who is considered the godfather of foot and ankle surgery for dancers. He was the team physician for American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet,” Dr. Hogan says. “And I’m fortunate that when I came to Pittsburgh in 2013, Dr. Fu asked me to work with the Ballet and Point Park. I partner with Dr. Kelley Anderson, who’s one of our primary care sports medicine physicians and a former dancer and gymnast. She’s phenomenal. 

“Dancers put a tremendous amount of strain on their bodies, so we put a lot of effort into injury prevention,” Dr. Hogan says. “At Point Park, we provide preventative education at the beginning of the academic year. We have an onsite training room there that is staffed by our Center for Rehab Services athletic trainers. And we also have a training room where we go to evaluate the dancers. When we need to do more, they come to UPMC Shadyside. 

“We’ve also really worked to leverage technology for the dancers — as well as the weekend warrior or any individual wanting to be pain-free,” he adds. “A huge step forward for us is the addition of a weight-bearing CT scanner at Shadyside. It’s the first of its kind within the entire 41-hospital UPMC system. It gives us the ability to do advanced imaging of the lower extremities in order to evaluate injuries and pathology, and to work toward injury prevention. 

“So the partnership with the Ballet and Point Park has only helped us be stronger clinically for everyone,” Dr. Hogan points out.

Dancers put a tremendous amount of strain on their bodies, so we put a lot of effort into injury prevention.
- MaCalus V. Hogan, MD, MBA

“He understands the language of dance”

“There is a great need for the care by Dr. Hogan and the UPMC team,” says Susan Jaffe, the former artistic director of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. Acclaimed by the New York Times as “America’s Quintessential American Ballerina,” she recently became artistic director of American Ballet Theatre, where she danced as a principal for 22 years. 

“Ballet dancers have to train so much and for so long because ballet technique is based on turnout, so our toes are facing out right and left,” Ms. Jaffe explains. “This obviously requires a tremendous amount of articulation, muscle strength, and coordination. Dr. Hogan and the UPMC team want to do as much as they can to address all of our needs, both short-term and long-term,” she adds. “It’s been a wonderful relationship.”

“Dr. Hogan is very loved by our dance students,” Dean Lemonius agrees. “He understands the language of dance. He understands how the daily regimen of training and putting the body through so much taxing movement puts a lot of stress on the physique. So our students feel comfortable talking with him about preventing injury and understanding what is happening in their bodies when something goes awry. 

 “You don’t think about injury prevention at 18,” says Dean Lemonius, who has performed in film, contemporary dance companies, and solo guest works across the United States, Canada, and Europe. “So we are very grateful to Dr. Hogan and the UPMC health practitioners for working with our young athlete artists on the importance of understanding the body and being mindful of its possibilities.”

We are very grateful to Dr. Hogan and the UPMC health practitioners for working with our young athlete artists on the importance of understanding the body and being mindful of its possibilities.
- Garfield Lemonius, MFA, Dean and artistic director of Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts

Staying stronger longer

“The most important thing for a dancer is learning to listen to your body, your instrument,” agrees Jessica McCann, 32, a soloist with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. “When you’re a young dancer, you sort of feel like you’re invincible,” she laughs. “And then maybe in your mid-20s to early 30s, you start feeling the pressure and strain on your joints and tendons. Every few weeks I learn something new about my body. It’s a growing relationship. 

“So it’s difficult to imagine doing my job without the support of Dr. Hogan and the UPMC team. He is so passionate about his work with the Ballet. They are always willing to listen to the dancers and learn from us and what our needs are. We’re athletes, but our muscles are different from an athlete who is on a field running. Our injuries are different,” says Ms. McCann, who studied all styles of dance and theatre starting at age four. When she was in her teens, however, she decided to make ballet her focus. 

“The therapists always comment about all of the little muscles in our feet, and how our feet are shaped differently from the other athletes that they work on,” she says. “There are certain muscles in a ballet dancer’s arch that have to be really strong in order to point your foot. Our muscles are longer than most athletes’, too, because of the training that we do. It’s not that they’re weaker, but they’re just not bulked up, especially if you look at a ballerina’s leg compared to a sprint runner or soccer player. Those sports shape your body in different ways from ballet.”

It’s difficult to imagine doing my job without the support of Dr. Hogan and the UPMC team. He is so passionate about his work with the Ballet. They are always willing to listen to the dancers and learn from us and what our needs are.
- Jessica McCann Soloist, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

Ms. McCann says that “at the professional level, when you’re dancing, taking classes, and rehearsing from nine to six every day, you have to balance pleasure with care to keep your body healthy. I haven’t had, knock on wood, a major injury. But I do have some deterioration — my right hip socket doesn’t have as much cartilage anymore. Through UPMC’s help, I was able to learn about what’s happening there. Now, I do a lot of physical therapy and exercises to maintain the health of the joint.

“I also get platelet-rich plasma injections, or PRP,” she adds. “This is a concentrate of your own blood plasma that decreases pain, reduces inflammation, and stimulates the body’s natural ability to heal.

“I’ll do this maintenance until I decide to retire,” Ms. McCann says. “I love ballet — the history behind it, the stories that you can tell on stage. It’s also, statistically, the hardest style of dance out there. But for me it’s also the most beautiful and rewarding. You gotta do what you love, right?”

Ballet dancers have to train so much and for so long because ballet technique is based on turnout, so our toes are facing out right and left. This obviously requires a tremendous amount of articulation, muscle strength, and coordination. Dr. Hogan and the UPMC team want to do as much as they can to address all of our needs, both short-term and long-term. It’s been a wonderful relationship.
- Susan Jaffe Former artistic director, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, now artistic director, American Ballet Theatre