The effects of gender, age, and body mass on dynamic foot shape and foot deformation inchildren and adolescents

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the present study is to identify influences of gender, age, and body mass on the dynamic foot morphology and foot deformation of maturing feet. Only advancements in scanner technology enable recording of foot morphology during walking.Methods: Static and dynamic foot morphology of 2554 participants (6–16 years) were measured with DynaScan4D. Different foot measures corresponding to measures used in last construction were defined. Influences of gender, age, and body mass were calculated within the whole sample by multiple linear regression analysis and within matched groups by Student's t-test.Results: The results of multiple linear regression analysis show similar patterns in boys and girls. The explained variance (R2) of the differences between static and dynamic foot morphology is low. R2 is higher for the maximum dynamic foot measures where the respective static value mainly predicts the dynamic value. Relative maximum dynamic values of foot height, width, and girth are higher in overweight, younger, and male participants. The deformation of the instep height and the angle of the fifth toe differ between overweight and normal weight participants. Between boys and girls as well as children and adolescents there are differences in the deformation of the ball area.Conclusion: There are effects of gender, age, and body mass on dynamic foot morphology and deformation. The differences are small regarding the high variability. Thus, dynamic adjustments are applicable without customising to gender, age, and body mass. However, it is important to account for the high variability and for static and dynamic situations. This should be discussed with focus on use of resilient materials. These results can improve footwear design and thus contribute to healthy foot development.