Fig 2 - uploaded by Damian G Kelty-Stephen
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Step length ( a ) and step width ( b ) by age. Each circle represents one participant ’ s average. Notice the steep slope in children who rapidly achieve adult step length, which remains constant through much of adulthood and declines later in life. Figure 2c and d highlight children ’ s step length ( c ) and step width ( d ) from 2 to 10 years old in our sample
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Background:
Walking mechanics are influenced by body morphology. Foot arch height is one aspect of body morphology central to walking. However, generalizations about the relationship between arch height and walking are limited due to previous methodologies used for measuring the arch and the populations that have been studied. To gain the knowledg...
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Citations
... Based on the step length ground truth, four different classes are created: other, typical step, small step, and big step. The normal range is considered according to the age, height, and sex of the participant in the dataset (Gill et al., 2016). Every step that is 20% higher than the average length (38 cm, see Section 2.2) is considered a big step, and every step that is 20% smaller than the average length, is considered a small step, as shown in Table 2. ...
... Although there are several studies and reviews related to foot posture and plantar pressure in adults [35][36][37], currently there is little research on the relationship between pathologies that affect the school-age population and the consequent biomechanical alterations, anomalies in static plantar pressures [38], and subsequent pathologies to help avoid harmful biomechanical compensation in the long term. ...
... Although there are several studies and reviews related to foot posture and plantar pressure in adults [35][36][37], currently there is little research on the relationship between pathologies that affect the school-age population and the consequent biomechanical alterations, anomalies in static plantar pressures [38], and subsequent pathologies to help avoid harmful biomechanical compensation in the long term. ...
Background:
The presence of hallux limitus in adulthood is frequently encountered in clinical practice, generating other biomechanical, structural, and functional compensations in dynamics secondary to blockage of the main pivot in the sagittal plane, the first metatarsophalangeal joint. In addition, the presence of functional hallux limitus (FHL) in school-age children is also increasing. Currently, there is a lack of scientific literature about this condition in the pediatric population, and early diagnosis is necessary to reduce future biomechanical disorders and avoid the development of foot arthritis. The purpose of this research was to identify static plantar pressures in school-age children with and without hallux limitus.
Methods:
A total sample of 106 children aged between six and twelve years old was divided into two groups: the case group (53 subjects with functional hallux limitus) and the control group (53 subjects without functional hallux limitus). Data were acquired with the participants in a standing barefoot position on the pressure platform, and the hallux limitus functional test was performed in a sitting position to classify the individuals into the determined study group. The variables analyzed in the research were: plantar pressure, bilateral forefoot and rearfoot surface area, bilateral forefoot and rearfoot ground reaction forces, bilateral forefoot and rearfoot distribution of body weight, total left and right surface area, maximum pressure of the left foot and right foot, medium pressure of the left foot and right foot, ground reaction forces of the left foot and right foot, and the weight of each foot.
Results:
Age was the only descriptive quantitative variable that showed a significant difference between the two study groups, with a p-value of 0.031. No statistically significant differences were found between groups in the bilateral forefoot and rearfoot surface area, ground reaction forces, distribution of body weight, or maximum and medium plantar pressure in the left and right foot.
Conclusions:
Changes in the location of the maximum pressure were observed, particularly in older participants with FHL, but these results were not significant. The findings of this study did not show significant differences between the static plantar pressures of school-age individuals with and without functional hallux limitus.
... The distribution of foot pressure depends on the person's body weight, but also on any pathological irregularities within its anatomical structure 23 . The assessment of the foot structure and load distribution is essential in terms of prevention strategies and pertinent remedial measures 17,21,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] . Screening tests facilitate regular monitoring of overall condition of the feet, whilst offering a diversity of easy-to-apply, non-invasive, objective, and reliable testing methods. ...
The study aimed to assess the association between the key predictive foot structure variables and its loading paradigm in 625 school-aged children. Clinical appraisal relied primarily on having the plantar parts of their feet comprehensively assessed with Podoscan 2D Foot CAD, and a dynamometer platform, the research tools of choice widely acknowledged for their overall accuracy and reliability, with a view to determining the distribution of respective foot loads, as well as addressing both balance and gait issues. The Clarke's angle, Wejsflog index, length and width of the feet, regardless of gender, proved the key predictive variables for the foot-loading paradigm. Notably the Clarke's angle, construed the most sensitive variable in assessing flat-footedness, offered an extra added value in overall investigative effort. The actual design of the study protocol effectively complements a standard clinical assessment procedure, whereas by comprehensively addressing those variables, it is also believed to aid clinicians in gaining an extra, hands-on, diagnostic potential, so that any teenagers exposed to the highest risk of developing foot deformities could effectively be identified through pertinent screening tests, and consequently offered a task-oriented, therapeutic management, specifically aimed at preventing potential postural complaints in later life.
... which is higher than that recorded in the study done by Gill et al. (56.1cm (SD=10.7) on a group of healthy 2 to 17 year old (n=254) American children [12]. A study done by Tesio et al. on 9-13 year old Italian children (n=20), reported a mean step length of 58.0cm (SD=0.05) ...
... C, There was a significant negative association between normalized velocity during the self condition and DLD total score, whereby greater velocity was associated with less impairment conditions, but remained relatively stable during the self-paced condition. In the typically developing population, decreases in gait velocity [33][34][35] occur in aging. For gait velocity, these changes are most evident after age 60, 33 with an exponential decline in gait speed after age 80. 34 Given the current cohort had a maximum age of 59 and average age of 37, it is promising that dual-task gait velocity tended to be slower as it may then indicate early effects of brain pathologies. ...
Introduction:
The striatum and frontal lobes have been shown to have early Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology and are critical for motor and cognitive function. We hypothesized gait would be associated with early-stage dementia in Down syndrome (DS), a cohort at risk for AD.
Methods:
Twenty-eight participants with DS were enrolled in the study. Participants walked at their self-selected pace and while completing a dual task (counting, obstacle, or counting+obstacle).
Results:
All participants were able to complete the self-paced condition and 78.57-96.42% completed the dual-task conditions. There was a trend for greater dual-task effects on gait velocity based on dementia diagnosis. Gait velocity had stronger associations with clinical dementia assessments than age or diagnosis.
Discussion:
A dual-task gait paradigm is feasible to conduct with adults with DS and is associated with age and cognitive impairment. Dual-task gait may serve as an indicator of early stage dementia in DS.
... Plantar pressure, as a metric for foot posture [8], is indeed associated to plantar forces and pressures during gait [9,10] and can be further associated to measures of balance, force reactions, foot arch measurements and other walking parameters [11]. Nevertheless, foot posture must be assessed in the context of activity, e.g. ...
... Controlling PS requires enough flexibility to absorb shock and adapt to an uneven terrain and, at a different movement phase, conversely sufficient rigidity to create an impulse to move forward [3]. Thus, a certain structural and functional alignment simply described as a foot type (FT) influences foot and lower limb functions, and kinematic gait parameters [4][5][6][7][8], and leads to PS difficulties and musculoskeletal disorders [9]. Current evidence shows that flexible flatfoot type and its poor function are risk factors of sport injuries [10][11][12]. ...
OBJECTIVE:The unique foot morphology and distinctive functions facilitate complex tasks and strategies such as standing, walking, and running. In those weight-bearing activities, postural stability (PS) plays an important role. Correlations among foot type, PS, and other musculoskeletal problems that increase sport injury risk are known. However, long-term associations among the foot type, the PS, and body weight (BW) distribution are lacking. Thus, the purpose of this study was to longitudinally identify changes in foot morphology, PS, and symmetry in BW distribution during adolescence among elite male soccer players. METHODS:Thirty-five Czech elite male soccer players (age, 15.49 ± 0.61 years; BW, 64.11 ± 6.16 kg; body height, 174.62 ± 5.71 cm) underwent foot type, PS, and BW distribution measurements during 3 consecutive years (T1, T2, T3). The Chippaux-Smirak index (CSI), BW distribution, and centre of pressure (COP) displacement (total traveled way [TTW]) of each player for the preferred (PL) and non-preferred leg (NL) were acquired. Repeated-measures analysis of variance (RM ANOVA), Bonferroni´s post hoc tests, and partial eta-squared (ηp2) coefficient were used for investigating the effect of time on selected variables and effect size evaluation. RESULTS:Statistically significant effect of time on CSI values (PL: F2,68 = 5.08, p < 0.01, ηp2 = 0.13 and NL: F2,68 = 10.87, p < 0.01, ηp2 = 0.24) and COP displacement values (PL: F2,68 = 5.07, p
... There have been several studies investigating the relationship between foot arch morphology and lower limb biomechanics in walking [2] with little evidence for altered lower limb motion in participants with flat feet [5]. Only few studies investigated paediatric populations showing longer steps in high-arched children [6] and altered knee and hip kinetics in low-arched children [7]. Other studies involving children found that low-arched participants have reduced hindfoot relative to tibia dorsiflexion and increased forefoot abduction (during stance) [8] or no altered lower limb kinematics [9]. ...
... Other studies involving children found that low-arched participants have reduced hindfoot relative to tibia dorsiflexion and increased forefoot abduction (during stance) [8] or no altered lower limb kinematics [9]. A systematic review by Buldt et al. (2013) [2] revealed a high heterogeneity of current research on gait with several different measurements of arch characteristics, such as arch height index [7,10], Chippaux-Smirak Index and Keimig-Index [6], as well as radiographical [11] or clinical diagnoses [5]. ...
... To our knowledge, there are no studies comparing arch characteristics and running biomechanics in children. Furthermore, there is conflicting evidence for walking biomechanics in children [6][7][8][9]27]. While Shih et. ...
Background:
While altered foot arch characteristics (high or low) are frequently assumed to influence lower limb biomechanics and are suspected to be a contributing factor for injuries, the association between arch characteristics and lower limb running biomechanics in children is unclear.
Research question:
Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between a dynamically measured arch index and running biomechanics in healthy children.
Methods:
One hundred and one children aged 10-14 years were included in this study and underwent a biomechanical investigation. Plantar distribution (Novel, Emed) was used to determine the dynamic arch index and 3D motion capture (Vicon) to measure running biomechanics. Linear mixed models were established to determine the association between dynamic arch index and foot strike patterns, running kinematics, kinetics and temporal-spatial outcomes.
Results:
No association was found between dynamic arch index and rate of rearfoot strikes (p = 0.072). Of all secondary outcomes, only the foot progression angle was associated with the dynamic arch index (p = 0.032) with greater external rotation in lower arched children.
Significance:
Overall, we found only few associations between arch characteristics and running biomechanics in children. However, altered foot arch characteristics are of clinical interest. Future studies should focus on detailed foot biomechanics and include clinically diagnosed high and low arched children.
... The use of a footprint based measure to represent a postural foot position has caused significant conjecture in the literature and indeed initiated the 'Flat or Fat?' debate [55]. Simply categorising the arch around dichotomous pathologies of either flat, normal, or high treats the arch as a simple uni-planar structure and in doing so disregards the complexity and multi-planar motion of the foot [48]. Gill and colleagues aptly demonstrated that feet with the same CSI and KI values could have vastly different foot prints and functional gait profiles [48]. ...
... Simply categorising the arch around dichotomous pathologies of either flat, normal, or high treats the arch as a simple uni-planar structure and in doing so disregards the complexity and multi-planar motion of the foot [48]. Gill and colleagues aptly demonstrated that feet with the same CSI and KI values could have vastly different foot prints and functional gait profiles [48]. Thus foot print-based measures may not be specific enough to capture the significant postural differences that feet can present with. ...
Background
All typically developing children are born with flexible flat feet, progressively developing a medial longitudinal arch during the first decade of their lives. Whilst the child’s foot is expected to be flat, there is currently no consensus as to how flat this foot should be. Furthermore, whilst feet are observed to decrease in flatness with increasing age, it is not known how flat they should be at each age increment. The objective of this systematic review is to define the postural characteristics of the ‘typically’ developing paediatric foot.
Methods
The PRISMA protocol was applied to compare all data currently published describing the typical development of the paediatric foot. The Epidemiological Appraisal Instrument (EAI) was used to assess the risk of bias of the included studies.
Results
Thirty four epidemiological papers pertaining to the development of the paediatric foot were graphically compared. Sixteen different foot posture assessments were identified of which footprint based measures were the most reported outcome.
Conclusion
Firstly, the use of the term normal in relation to foot posture is misleading in the categorisation of the paediatric foot, as indeed a flat foot posture is a normal finding at specific ages. Secondly, the foot posture of the developing child is indeed age dependent and has been shown to change over time. Thirdly, no firm conclusion could be reached as to which age the foot posture of children ceases to develop further, as no two foot measures are comparable, therefore future research needs to consider the development of consensus recommendations as to the measurement of the paediatric foot, using valid and reliable assessment tools.
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13047-017-0218-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
