Lee Sae Yong, Hertel Jay
Dept of Physical Education, Yonsei Univeristy, Seoul, South Korea.
J Sport Rehabil. 2012 May;21(2):137-43. doi: 10.1123/jsr.21.2.137. Epub 2011 Nov 15.
Altered foot dynamics due to malalignment of the foot may change plantar-pressure properties, resulting in various kinds of overuse injuries.
To assess the effect of foot characteristics on plantar-pressure-related measures such as maximum pressure, maximum pressure-time, and pressure-time integral underneath the medial aspect of the foot during running.
Cross-sectional.
Laboratory.
8 men and 17 women.
Static non-weight-bearing rear-foot and forefoot alignment and navicular drop were measured. Plantar-pressure data were collected while subjects jogged at 2.6 m/s on a treadmill. Maximum pressure, time to maximum pressure, and pressure-time integral of the medial side of the foot were extracted for data analysis. Multiple-regression analysis was used to examine the effect of arch height and rear-foot and forefoot alignment on maximum pressure and pressure-time integral in the medial side of the foot.
In the medial rear-foot and midfoot regions, only rear-foot alignment had a significant effect on the variance of maximum pressure and pressure-time integral. There were no significant difference effects in the medial forefoot region.
Rear-foot alignment was found to be a significant predictor of maximum plantar pressure and pressure-time integral in the medial rear-foot and midfoot regions. This indicates that control of rear-foot alignment may help decrease plantar pressure on the medial region of the foot, which may potentially prevent injuries associated with excessive rear-foot eversion.
