Background This narrative review explores the ways in which drawing on theories and methods used in sociological work on footwear and identity can contribute to healthcare research with podiatrists and their patients, highlighting recent research in this field, implications for practice and potential areas for future development.Traditionally, research within Podiatry Services has tended to ado...

Many researchers investigate how footwear design affects plantar pressure (PP) and ask participants to walk in unfamiliar footwear as part of their studies. However, there are no clear guidelines for the required period of time or number of steps a healthy participant requires to acclimatise to unfamiliar footwear. Nor are there clear guidelines for how many steps should be collected to produce...

SUMARY: Nowadays, users choose footwear based only in length and width measurements, but it is widely accepted that three-dimensional shape of the foot can help in good shoe fitting. However, both acquisition and processing of 3D data involves some technical and methodological difficulties. The combination of 3D scanning systems with mathematical classification techniques makes possible the dev...

BACKGROUND AND AIM Much previous research on orthotic walkers has focussed on their ability to offload structures in the foot and ankle; however, little is known about their effects on lower limb mechanics. This study aimed to determine effects of two orthotic walkers on the biomechanics of the knee and hip joints compared to standardised footwear. TECHNIQUE A total of 10 healthy participants...

Children of footwear making units are working in the soling process. The process includes fixing of upper part with the sole of the footwear. The adhesives contain a mix of organic solvents, which are released in the working environment and cause irritation and lacrimation of eyes. In addition poor illumination and ventilation further aggravates the eyestrain. The present study was carried out ...

INTRODUCTION Walking barefoot is common in poorer developing countries which have large rural populations. Although high rates of foot injury could be expected among those who walk barefoot, walking barefoot as a risk factor for diabetic foot disease is rarely documented in the literature. METHODS Two preliminary clinical studies were undertaken to investigate whether there is a causal link b...

Therapeutic footwear (TFW) is often provided for people with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) for reducing foot pain & increasing patient mobility. However patient dissatisfaction & non-compliance means that it may not be the panacea for foot problems that practitioners presume it to be. The purpose of the study was to explore RA patient’s opinions about their foot problems, foot orthoses (FOs) and fo...

2 ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to compare muscle activation in eight superficial lower limb muscles during execution of barbell back squats while in barefoot and athletic shoe conditions. It was hypothesized that greater muscle activity would be seen when squats were performed in barefoot conditions. Six participants were included in the study (means: 21.33±1.53 years, 170.45±11.33cm ...

Possible benefits of barefoot running have been widely discussed in recent years. Uncertainty exists about which footwear strategy adequately simulates barefoot running kinematics. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of athletic footwear with different minimalist strategies on running kinematics. Thirty-five distance runners (22 males, 13 females, 27.9 ± 6.2 years, 179.2 ...

Shoes are selected for protection, correction, and fashion. Parents are often confused by conflicting advice for appropriate footwear for children. The common practice of using footwear for correction of foot or leg “deformities” in otherwise healthy children has limited evidence of effectiveness. In this article the evidence supporting the use of corrective shoes for otherwise healthy children...