#Bilateral pes planus trial#

Focusing on the influence of footwear on the prevalence of pes planus, the cross-sectional study performed on children noted that wearing shoes throughout early childhood can be detrimental to the development of a normal or a high medial longitudinal arch. One medical study in India with a large sample size of children who had grown up wearing shoes and others going barefoot found that the longitudinal arches of the bare-footers were generally strongest and highest as a group, and that flat feet were less common in children who had grown up wearing sandals or slippers than among those who had worn closed-toe shoes. Ligament laxity is also among the factors known to be associated with flat feet. Training of the feet, utilizing foot gymnastics and going barefoot on varying terrain, can facilitate the formation of arches during childhood, with a developed arch occurring for most by the age of four to six years. This represents a talocalcaneal coalition, which is an abnormal connection between the talus and calcaneus, and is thought to cause the flat foot deformity in this case. Lateral X-ray of a flat foot with C-sign, which is a bony bridge between the talar dome and sustentaculum tali, in combination with a prominent inferior border of the sustentaculum tali. Children who complain about calf muscle pains, arch pain, or any other pains around the foot area may be developing or have developed flat feet. Besides visual inspection of feet and of the treadwear pattern on shoe soles, caregivers should notice when a child's gait is abnormal or the child seems to be in pain from walking. Since children are unlikely to suspect or identify flat feet on their own, it is important for adult caregivers to check on this themselves. As a symptom itself, flat feet usually accompany genetic musculoskeletal conditions such as dyspraxia, ligamentous laxity or hypermobility.

#Bilateral pes planus trial#

A 2007 randomized controlled trial found no evidence for the efficacy of treatment of flat feet in children either from expensive prescribed orthotics i.e (shoe inserts) or less expensive over-the-counter orthotics. Children with flat feet are at a higher risk of developing knee, hip, and back pain.

Flat arches in children usually become high arches as the child progresses through adolescence and into adulthood. The human arch develops in infancy and early childhood as part of normal muscle, tendon, ligament and bone growth. Studies have shown flat feet are a common occurrence in children and adolescents. They also cannot be applied to persons whose flat feet are associated with foot symptoms, or certain symptoms in other parts of the body (such as the leg or back) possibly referable to the foot.įlat feet of a child are usually expected to develop into high or proper arches, as shown by feet of the mother. However, these studies cannot be used to judge possible future damage from this condition when diagnosed at younger ages.

Three studies (see citations below in Military performance section) of military recruits have shown no evidence of increased injury, or foot problems, due to flat feet, in a population of people who reach military service age without prior foot problems. However, a recent randomized controlled trial found no evidence for the efficacy of treatment of flat feet in children either from expensive prescribed orthotics (i.e., shoe inserts) or less expensive over-the-counter orthotics. This latter condition is often treated with arch supports. If the MLA is present and functional while the individual is sitting or standing up on their toes, but this arch disappears when assuming a foot-flat stance, the individual has “supple” flatfoot. If the MLA is absent or nonfunctional in both the seated and standing positions, the individual has “rigid” flatfoot. As a result, the Plantar calcaneonavicular ligament (spring ligament) and the tendon of the tibialis posterior muscle are stretched to the extent that the individual with pes planus loses the function of the medial longitudinal arch (MLA). In pes planus, the head of the talus bone is displaced medially and distal from the navicular bone. The arch provides an elastic, springy connection between the forefoot and the hind foot so that a majority of the forces incurred during weight bearing on the foot can be dissipated before the force reaches the long bones of the leg and thigh. There is a functional relationship between the structure of the arch of the foot and the biomechanics of the lower leg. Flat feet (also called pes planus or fallen arches) is a postural deformity in which the arches of the foot collapse, with the entire sole of the foot coming into complete or near-complete contact with the ground.