Lower Extremity Review
A German study of individuals with instrumented knee implants suggests the actual effects of footwear on loading in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) may be much more subtle than those reported in previous studies using indirect measures of load.
Long-term wear of high-heeled shoes leads to significant alterations in ankle range of motion (ROM) and muscle strength, according to researchers from the Republic of Korea.
Unlike experienced runners, almost all novice runners tend to use a rearfoot strike pattern when wearing a conventional running shoe, according to a Danish study e-published in January by Gait & Posture.
The research on toning shoes presented early this month at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine in San Francisco didn’t add much support for controversial claims that the rocker-bottom footwear promotes muscle activation and energy expenditure. But the presenters did point out more subtle benefits of toning shoes that manufacturers might find are more acceptable to the Federal Trade Commission.
In workers wearing occupational footwear, the mass of a boot may be less important for maintaining balance than its shaft height, according to a study presented in late May at the annual ACSM meeting.
Injured runners do not make sagittal plane kinematic adaptations to changes in midsole hardness the way that healthy runners do, according to research from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UW-L) presented in late May at the ACSM meeting.
Recent research from the Netherlands suggests that a custom-made orthopedic shoe designed for temporary use can enhance early mobilization after stroke, improving functional mobility, walking speed, and gait.
By Emily Delzell
Research from the Auckland University of Technology suggests use of poor footwear is a major problem in patients with gout, finding that 42% of individuals studied wore shoes with inadequate cushioning, support, stability, or motion control. The New Zealand...
Girls who take part in recreational jazz dancing may be wearing dance shoes that adversely affect muscle activation and restrict their ability to attain the optimal pointed, or plantar flexed, position while dancing, according to Australian researchers. Investigators...
Potential benefits include balance
So-called toning shoes may be best known for ads promising a better butt, but research presented in June at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine suggests the real benefits may lie outside the gluteus maximus.
The frequency content of vertical ground reaction forces generated during running differ among forefoot strikers and rearfoot strikers, and this may have implications for injury risk, according to findings from the University of Massachusetts presented in June at the...
Shoe modifications based on plantar pressure measurements in patients with diabetic neuropathy can substantially reduce regional elevated loading associated with ulceration risk, according to research from the Netherlands. Investigators from the University of...
Findings suggest divergent gait effects
The findings of a recent meta-analysis seem likely to fuel the ongoing discussion about the relative biomechanical advantages of footwear relative to barefoot walking or running, but not necessarily in the ways one might expect.
The increased joint moments associated with walking in standard athletic shoes are not affected by the amount of motion control provided by the shoe, according to research from the University of Virginia. Investigators analyzed 68 healthy young adults as they walked...
When it comes to shoe lacing, looser is not necessarily better for patients with diabetes. Loose laces are associated with higher pressure time integrals under some regions of the foot than comfortably tightened laces, according to research from the Netherlands...
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