Estimation of height from measurement of foot breadth and foot length in adult population of Rajasthan

Abstract

Background: Stature is one of the various parameters of identification of the individuality of a person. Estimation of stature from various measurements of the body is of value in medicolegal investigations as well as in anthropology. The current study dealt with developing a regression equation for stature estimation from foot breadth and foot length and to find out the correlation between stature, foot breadth and foot length. Material and Methods: The data was collected from 500 asymptomatic, healthy medical students (267 males & 233 females) belonging to Rajasthan of age group ranged between 17-25 years. The study was conducted at Jawahar Lal Nehru Medical College, Ajmer, Rajasthan. Results: The correlation between foot length and stature (r= 0.756) was more than foot breadth and stature (r= 0.624) indicating foot length to be a better predictor of stature. Linear regression equations were derived for estimation of stature from foot breadth and foot length. Conclusion: Both foot breadth and foot length showed positive correlation with stature as indicated by the regression coefficient (r). The tibialis foot type was commonest followed by fibularis and then by indeterminate type. Key words: stature; foot type; foot breadth; foot length; correlation