Abstract
BackgroundSynergetic talocrural and subtalar joint movements allow adaptation to different footwear and/or surface conditions. Therefore, knowledge of kinematic differences between barefoot and shod conditions is valuable for the study of adaptations to footwear conditions. The objective of this study was to assess the kinematic differences in the talocrural and subtalar joints during barefoot and shod landing.MethodsSeven healthy participants (4 males and 3 females) participated in a landing trial under barefoot and shod conditions. Fluoroscopic images and forceplate data were collected simultaneously to calculate the talocrural and subtalar joint kinematics and the vertical ground reaction force.ResultsUpon toe contact, the plantarflexion angle of the talocrural joint during the barefoot condition was significantly larger than that during the shod condition (barefoot, 20.5 ± 7.1°, shod, 17.9 ± 8.3°, p =0.03). From toe contact to heel contact, the angular changes at the talocrural and subtalar joint were not significantly different between the barefoot and shod conditions; however, the changes in the subtalar eversion angles in the barefoot condition, from heel contact to 150 ms after toe contact, were significantly larger than those in the shod condition.ConclusionsThese results suggest that footwear was able to reduce the eversion angle of the subtalar joint after heel contact during landing; the effect of wearing footwear was quite limited. Therefore, induced rearfoot kinematic alterations to prevent or manage injuries by neutral-type footwear are likely to be impractical.
Highlights
Synergetic talocrural and subtalar joint movements allow adaptation to different footwear and/or surface conditions
Sports footwear is a key component of the equipment used in sports and exercise, and acts as an interface between the foot and the ground to help protect the foot from injury
The kinematics of the lower extremity during walking and running can be altered by footwear and orthotics
Summary
Synergetic talocrural and subtalar joint movements allow adaptation to different footwear and/or surface conditions. Intracortical pins have been used to quantify the effects on tibiocalcaneal kinematics when wearing footwear [9], orthotics [10], and modified shoe soles [11] during slow running owing to their ability to provide precise in vivo bone movement determinations. This method is highly invasive and may influence movement because of the application of local anesthesia. These strategies work, but may change the mechanical properties of the footwear, even if the openings are kept small to minimize the damage to the footwear
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