Article

Several studies have investigated if static posture assessments qualify to
predict dynamic function of the foot showing diverse outcomes. However, it was
suggested that dynamic measures may be better suited to predict foot-related
overuse problems.
The purpose of this study was to establish the reliability for
dynamic measures of longitudinal arch angle (LAA) and navicular height (NH) and
to examine to what extent static and dynamic measures thereof are related.
Intra-rater reliability of LAA and NH measures was tested on a sample of 17
control subjects. Subsequently, 79 subjects were tested while walking on a
treadmill. The ranges and minimum values for LAA and NH during ground contact
were identified over 20 consecutive steps. A geometric error model was used to
simulate effects of marker placement uncertainty and skin movement artifacts.
Results demonstrated the highest reliability for the minimum NH (MinNH), followed
by the minimum LAA (MinLAA), the dynamic range of navicular height (DeltaNH) and
the range of LAA (DeltaLAA) while all measures were highly reliable. Marker
location uncertainty and skin movement artifacts had the smallest effects on
measures of NH. The use of an alignment device for marker placement was shown to
reduce error ranges for NH measures. Therefore, DeltaNH and MinNH were
recommended for functional dynamic foot characterization in the sagittal plane.
There is potential for such measures to be a suitable predictor for overuse
injuries while being obtainable in clinical settings. Future research needs to
include such dynamic but simple foot assessments in large-scale clinical studies.
CI - Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS