Puszczalowska-Lizis Ewa, Koziol Karolina, Omorczyk Jaroslaw
Medical College, Institute of Health Sciences, University of Rzeszow, Rzeszow, Poland.
Health Center Tuchow, Tuchow, Poland.
PeerJ. 2021 Oct 19;9:e12385. doi: 10.7717/peerj.12385. eCollection 2021.
Adequate footwear comfort and functionality are important regardless of age, but they become particularly important in the youngest-old women and men, mainly due to the fact that this age range is the initial period of old age with changes in shoe preferences. The aim of this study was to assess the perception of footwear comfort and its relationship with the feet structure in youngest-old women and men.
The cross-sectional study covered community dwellers living on their own aged 65-74 years (50 women; 50 men). The feet characteristics were measured using the CQ-ST podoscope (Electronic System, Ltd, EU), and the perception of footwear comfort was assessed with a visual analogue scale. The assessment took into account gender-specific footwear of a certain brand (Befado Dr orto).
Statistically significant intergender differences were observed in the perception of footwear comfort with respect to the shoe heel width ( = 0.022), the arch height ( = 0.013), the overall comfort ( = 0.049) and the material properties of the footwear ( = 0.017). In women, there were statistically significant positive relationships among the heel angle () and the perception of footwear comfort in terms of heel cushioning ( = 0.021), forefoot cushioning ( = 0.015), arch height ( = 0.029). In men, there was a statistically significant negative relationship of the left foot Clarke's angle with the heel height ( = 0.043), and a positive relationship between the right foot width and the arch height ( = 0.044).
Youngest-old women, compared to men of the same age range, have a higher perception of shoe comfort in terms of the shoe heel width, the arch height, the overall comfort of the footwear and the material properties of the footwear. The appropriate profile and construction of the shoe allows for an increase in the contact surface of the foot with the shoe, hence the improvement in the perception of footwear comfort in people with lowered arch or widened forefoot.
无论年龄大小，充足的鞋类舒适度和功能性都很重要，但对于最年长的老年女性和男性而言，它们变得尤为重要，主要是因为这个年龄段是老年的初始阶段，人们的鞋类偏好会发生变化。本研究的目的是评估最年长的老年女性和男性对鞋类舒适度的感知及其与足部结构的关系。
这项横断面研究涵盖了65 - 74岁独自生活的社区居民（50名女性；50名男性）。使用CQ - ST足诊仪（欧盟电子系统有限公司）测量足部特征，并用视觉模拟量表评估鞋类舒适度感知。评估考虑了某个特定品牌（贝法多·德奥拓）的特定性别鞋类。
在鞋跟宽度（P = 0.022）、足弓高度（P = 0.013）、整体舒适度（P = 0.049）和鞋类材料特性（P = 0.017）方面，观察到鞋类舒适度感知存在统计学上显著的性别差异。在女性中，鞋跟角度（α）与鞋类在足跟缓冲（P = 0.021）、前脚掌缓冲（P = 0.015）、足弓高度（P = 0.029）方面的舒适度感知之间存在统计学上显著的正相关关系。在男性中，左脚克拉克角与鞋跟高度之间存在统计学上显著的负相关关系（P = 0.043），右脚宽度与足弓高度之间存在正相关关系（P = 0.044）。
与同年龄段的男性相比，最年长的老年女性在鞋跟宽度、足弓高度、鞋类整体舒适度和鞋类材料特性方面对鞋类舒适度的感知更高。鞋类的合适外形和构造能够增加足部与鞋子的接触面积，从而提高足弓降低或前脚掌变宽人群的鞋类舒适度感知。
