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I have been asked to give an interview for an Irish news program on the possible problems associated with the use of Heelys from a podiatry point of view. Heelys are the trainers that kids are using with the wheel in the heel - see www.heelys.com
You can only walk in them by adopting a toe-heel gait - can anyone see any other problems that long term use of these may cause?

Justin Blake

 

Blarney

Much of the concerns raised so far relate to falls injuires.

In July 2003, the Korea Consumer Protection Board issued a consumer alert about injuries from falls related to Heelys. The alert mentioned fractured arms and legs as well as possible head injuries, and noted that no safety standards apply to the product

Canadian Safety Council http://www.safety-council.org/info/child/heely.html

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:11YHsv993iQJ:www.orfa.com/facilityalert/Facility%2520Alert%2520Heelies.pdf+shoes+with+wheels+injuries&hl=en&gl=au&ct=clnk&cd=6

http://starbulletin.com/2001/07/24/features/story1.html

http://www.stayinginshape.com/3osfcorp/libv/d03.shtml

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:SToexXC8jM8J:www.toysafety.org/pdf/sunfun2006.pdf+shoes+with+wheels+injuries&hl=en&gl=au&ct=clnk&cd=3&bcsi_scan_908F32D8DCB9909E=0r9gzR5GJ++m7e+h6N1nbggAAAAUbDgD

http://www.wmur.com/specialreports/9543679/detail.html

Break a leg,as they say

Cameron

 

I know of at least one case where these shoes nearly caused a child to have a shopping basket inserted rectally. Sideways. Having some repulsive teenager colliding with you in tesco's is not a good way to spend a thursday evening and had my mood been even slightly more foul would have caused "a Bit Of A Scene". :mad:

These shoes are surely the worst idea in the long and tragic history of bad ideas!

Regards
Robert

 

I must admit I don't think Heelies are any different from roller skates, roller blades etc., and the solution is that the use of them should be banned by the stores - there seems to be an epidemic of total lack of consideration for other inhabitants of this planet of ours not only from Heelie users but from people who use mobile phones, eat, smoke etc while driving.

As long as youngsters are supervised in the use of adventurous hobbies by sensible adults I think it is important that we do not wrap our younger generation in cotton wool and become a totally nanny state.

 

I think they these Heelies are cool and I would have wanted a pair if I was only 8 years old again. I wonder.....do they make them in size 12 and black for office attire so I can glide from room to room on one of my busy 35 patient days?? :rolleyes:

 

Taffy

From your post I don't if you are for or against Heelies and skates etc.
But god save us from the 'I don't like it so ban it brigade' that seem to get their way so much in GB these days.

Kevin Kirby quote

Hear! Hear!


Cheers Dave Smith

 

Hi,

My 8 year old daughter has a pair and it's great to hear her want to go outside and try them out ,even during the miserable Scottish weather! It's also fantastic to see her improving ever time she tries them.

I'd much rather she was on her Heelys than watching TV or playing her DS.

I'm not sure what makes them more dangerous than skates,skateboards etc ?

Cheers,

Neil.

 

Justin:

You may consider in your interview to discuss that children often wear many types of shoes that are not ideal for their feet, regardless of whether they have wheels in the heel or not. Probably more injuries have occurred in within the past few decades in young girls wearing inappropriate, nonsupportive, thick soled or higher heeled shoes that are unstable then will ever occur from the use of "heelys". You may want to add during the interview that even wearing no shoes can cause injury. Therefore, I wouldn't "fan the flames" too much about these "heelys" since, to me, they are a non-issue. I haven't seen any injuries in my practice because of these shoes which, I might add, are very common here in California.

 

Netizens

Can keep your Heelys on hold, I say and I may be even move out of my Crocs

United Nude have just exhibited their latest at the NY Fashion week

They'll do for me.



http://www.unitednude.com/united-nude.aspx?group=EAMZ

 

Just want to confirm that I am not against Heelies in fact we bought them for 3 of our grandchildren as Christmas presents and they love playing on them. In fact previously one of our granddaughters broke an ankle falling off the trampoline and another tripped over her shoe laces at school (not Heelie laces) and broke her ankle so one cannot hold Heelies responsible for an increase in accidents - it is part of real life and teaching children to be responsible whilst enjoying themselves. Accidents do happen in every sphere of life so don't try and wrap our young people in cotton wool but teach them to be adventurous at the same time as being responsible.

 

Hi There
love those shoes posted by cameron. lol. I'd appreciate your thoughts on a few of things i tell parents when they present with their children and Heelys. Alternate the lead leg for dexterity and proprioception. Kids/people in general are prone to using one side predominantly. So switch it up. I tell them the dorsiflexion in the lead foot can help to keep the posterior muscle groups and tendons limber. Its an easier way to get kids to stretch. Especially for the kids who are into 3-4 differnt types of sport.
Clare

 

Netizens

Welsh Foot Police act.

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100...objectid=18595021&siteid=50082-name_page.html

Cameron

 

Whilst seeing yet another kid glide across the local shopping mall on a pair of Heelys, i did wonder if this could put undue strain upon tib. ant., since to load the wheel in the heel one is required to dorsiflex the foot.

 

Netizens

The Boston watchdog group, World against Toys Causing Harm, put Heelys on their annual “10 Worst Toys” list in 2006 <http://www.toysafety.org/worstToyList_index.html>, because of their concerns of injuries.

Heelys are concerned about safety and warn consumers the wheeled footwear is for recreational sport only and should not be treated as a novelty or toy. All necessary precautions to reduce injuries are recommended such as wearing appropriate safety gear. A recent survey based on data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission and National Sporting Goods Association reported wheeled sports - wheeled shoes, in-line skating and skateboarding when used with proper safety equipment were safer than basketball, baseball or soccer.

Heelys are currently working on a motorised version for adults.

Now, I wonder if that will be available in Crocs? :rolleyes:

This is Cameron Kippen in Perth (loneliest city in the world), on POETS Day

Have a good one

 

Heelys, Inc <http://www.heelys.com> recently commissioned a retrospective study using Consumer Product Safety Commission <http://www.cpsc.gov/> (CPSC) data. The works were conducted by product safety consultancy, Heiden Associates <http://www.heideninc.com> in 2006, their study analyzed over 2.056 million CPSC incident reports through CPSC's National Electronic Injury Surveillance System*<http://www.cpsc.gov/library/neiss.html> (NEISS) on product-related injuries from January 2001 through September 2006. The findings demonstrated when Heelys were used in accordance with safety instructions provided on the company packaging and at the Heelys Web site, wheeled sports provided safe opportunities for children to exercise. The author’s concluded using Heelys wheeled footwear was significantly safer than bicycling, skateboarding, basketball, soccer and even tennis. These findings mirror an earlier study. Bike riders had the highest injury rate in the wheeled sports category, while wheeled shoes had the best safety record of all wheeled sports, with an injury rate of only two percent of that for bike riding. When used following the safety instructions wheeled footwear was safer than nearly all other popular sports with the exception of table tennis, billiards and bowling. Some orthopaedic’s specialists now think the active calf stretching involved in wheeling on the heel may help prevent Calcaneal Apophysitis.

*National Electronic Injury Surveillance System <http://www.cpsc.gov/library/neiss.html> (NEISS) is an excellent source of data for research.

toeslayer

 

Yahoo! News are reporting:
Doctors say roller shoes injuring kids
June 3, 2007 09:24:24 PM PST

 

Okay - Plan A

Crocs upper, Nike air mid sole, MBT sole and a Heelys heel unit - oh yes an OTC orthotic.

 

Jonathan

Toe clevage is essential.

toeslayer