Impact of foot arch type and minimalist footwear on static postural stability

Abstract

Intrinsic factors such as foot arch type and extrinsic factors such as footwear are among the main contributors for a higher lower extremity injury incidence due to their impact on postural stability. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of foot type and two types of Vibram™ five fingers footwear on static postural stability. Twenty-four healthy males (age 21.38 ± 2.50 years, height 1.74 ± 0.06 m, mass 71.24 ± 10.37 kg) were recruited and categorized into neutral, pronated and supinated categories according to the foot posture index 6. Participants were tested on the barefoot condition first, followed by two types of minimalist Vibram™ footwear [Vibram™ Bikila (VB) and Vibram™ Trek ascent (VT)] in a counterbalanced manner. Static balance was tested on a stable and unstable surface under the following conditions: bilateral eyes open (BL EO), bilateral eyes closed (BL EC), unilateral eyes open (UL EO) and unilateral eyes closed (UL EC)]. The results revealed a significant footwear main effect for the stable BL EO, stable UL EC, and unstable UL EC conditions with greater balance performance in the barefoot condition compared to shod conditions. In the unstable UL EO condition, shod conditions elicited greater balance performance compared to bare feet. Overall, VT had greater balance performance compared to VB. Foot type did not demonstrate a significant impact on static balance. In conclusion, the barefoot condition elicited greater static balance performance in all conditions except during extremely challenging sensory conditions where VT was found to be the footwear of choice, which can be attributed to its design characteristics.