An Estimate of Foot Arch Height

Griff · Feb 9, 2010

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From Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, February 2010 - Volume 42 - Issue 2 - pp 375-380

Validity of Plantar Surface Visual Assessment as an Estimate of Foot Arch Height

Purpose: Popular running magazines and running shoe companies advise using the shape of the weight-bearing plantar surface of the foot as a basis for selecting a proper type of running shoe to reduce injury risk. The imprint is assumed to reflect the height of the medial longitudinal arch (MLA). This study examined the assumption that plantar surface morphology was a surrogate for height of the MLA.

Methods: Recruits (n = 3968) entering US Army Basic Combat Training had their plantar foot surfaces assessed visually as low, normal, or high by two raters who viewed imprints of the plantar foot surface. Actual arch height was measured with calipers as distance from the standing surface to the inferior medial border of the navicular tuberosity. Measured MLA heights were compared with plantar surface imprints to evaluate the effectiveness of visual inspection as a means of arch height classification.

Results: For the right foot, individuals with low, normal, or high plantar shapes had a mean ± SD arch height of 33.5 ± 6.8, 40.4 ± 7.2, and 43.1 ± 7.3 mm, respectively (ANOVA, P < 0.01); however, the individuals' measured MLA heights fell into the corresponding plantar shape percentiles (low, normal, high) only 65% of the time. Increased body mass index (BMI) decreased correct assessment of the MLA.

Conclusions: Visual assessment of indicating progressively higher plantar shapes corresponded to progressively higher average differences in measured arch heights; nonetheless, there was considerable overlap among the three plantar shapes with 35% of plantar shapes being misclassified compared with measured arch height, especially among individuals with higher BMI.
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Does anyone have a subscription to this journal and would be kind enough to email me a copy of this article?

Ian

Bruce Williams · Feb 9, 2010

Ian said: ↑

From Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, February 2010 - Volume 42 - Issue 2 - pp 375-380

Does anyone have a subscription to this journal and would be kind enough to email me a copy of this article?

Ian
Click to expand...

send me your email address. There are actually 2-3 articles like this one out there too.
bruce
bwilliams@breakthroughpodiatry.com

Griff · Feb 9, 2010

Bruce,

You've got mail

Thanks in advance

Ian

efuller · Feb 9, 2010

Ian said: ↑

From Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, February 2010 - Volume 42 - Issue 2 - pp 375-380

Does anyone have a subscription to this journal and would be kind enough to email me a copy of this article?

Ian
Click to expand...

Whatever happened to Footmaax? They were the company that claimed that they could get a three dimensional shape (and make an orthotic) from a pressure sensing mat. They claimed that they had propritary algorhythms that enabled the do that. These brief results are saying that they can do that very well.

Eric

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