• Stroke
• balance
• calf stretching
• gait
• plantar fascia stretching

• Humans
• Male
• Female
• Middle Aged
• Postural Balance/physiology
• Range of Motion, Articular/physiology
• Stroke/physiopathology
• Stroke/complications
• Muscle Stretching Exercises
• Aged
• Stroke Rehabilitation/methods
• Chronic Disease
• Adult
• Gait/physiology
• Ankle Joint/physiopathology
• Treatment Outcome
• Disability Evaluation
• Fascia/physiopathology
• Ankle/physiopathology

• Flat foot
• Medial longitudinal arch
• Posture
• Tape

Pes planus (flatfoot) and pes cavus (high arch foot) are common foot deformities, often requiring clinical and radiographic assessment for diagnosis and potential subsequent management. Traditional diagnostic methods, while effective, pose limitations such as cost, radiation exposure, and accessibility, particularly in underserved areas.

To develop deep learning algorithms that detect and classify such deformities using smartphone cameras.

An algorithm that integrated a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) into a smartphone camera was utilized to detect pes planus and pes cavus deformities. This case control study was conducted at a tertiary hospital with participants recruited from two orthopaedic foot and ankle clinics. The CNN was trained and tested using photographs of the medial aspect of participants’ feet, taken under standardized conditions. Participants included subjects with standard foot alignment, pes planus, or pes cavus determined by an expert clinician using the foot posture index. The model’s performance was assessed in comparison to clinical assessment and radiographic measurements, specifically lateral tarsal-first metatarsal angle and calcaneal inclination angle.

The CNN model demonstrated high accuracy in diagnosing both pes planus and pes cavus, with an optimized area under the curve of 0.90 for pes planus and 0.90 for pes cavus. It showed a specificity and sensitivity of 84% and 87% for pes planus detection, respectively; and 97% and 70% for pes cavus, respectively. The model’s prediction correlated moderately with radiographic lateral Meary’s angle measurements, indicating the model’s excellent reliability in assessing food arch deformity (P < 0.05).

This study highlights the potential of using a smartphone-based CNN model as a screening tool that is reliable and accessible for the detection of pes planus and pes cavus deformities, which is especially beneficial for underserved communities and patients with pain generated by subtle foot arch deformities.

• Artificial intelligence
• Computer vision
• Three-dimensional scanning
• Lower extremity
• High-arch
• Flatfoot

• Humans
• Flatfoot/therapy
• Foot
• Foot Orthoses
• Lower Extremity
• Tarsal Bones
• Postural Balance

• Ratchadaphiseksomphot Fund
• The 100th Anniversary Chulalongkorn University Fund for Doctoral Scholarship

• Biomechanical Phenomena
• Child
• Exercise
• Fatigue
• Foot
• Humans
• Pronation

• dry needling
• foot
• myofascial pain syndrome
• platform
• trigger point

• Adult
• Equipment Design
• Female
• Flatfoot/physiopathology
• Foot Orthoses
• Humans
• Mechanical Phenomena
• Pressure
• Time Factors
• Walking

• Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan
• Doctoral Science and Research of Nantong University
• Public Welfare Research Fund of Department of Science and Technology of Liaoning

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of arch support insoles on uphill and downhill walking of persons with flatfoot. Sixteen healthy college students with flatfoot were recruited in this study. Their heart rate, peak oxygen uptake (VO₂), and median frequency (MDF) of surface electromyogram were recorded and analyzed. Nonparametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for statistical analysis. The main results were as follows: (a) peak VO₂ significantly decreased with arch support insoles compared with flat insoles during uphill and downhill walking (arch support insole versus flat insole: uphill walking, 20.7 ± 3.6 versus 31.6 ± 5.5; downhill walking, 10.9 ± 2.3 versus 16.9 ± 4.2); (b) arch support insoles could reduce the fatigue of the rectus femoris muscle during downhill walking (MDF slope of arch support insole: 0.03 ± 1.17, flat insole: −6.56 ± 23.07); (c) insole hardness would increase not only the physical sensory input but also the fatigue of lower-limb muscles particularly for the rectus femoris muscle (MDF slope of arch support insole: −1.90 ± 1.60, flat insole: −0.83 ± 1.10) in persons with flatfoot during uphill walking. The research results show that arch support insoles could effectively be applied to persons with flatfoot to aid them during uphill and downhill walking.

Although orthotic modification using the inverted technique is available for the treatment of flatfoot, empirical evidence for the biomechanical effects of inverted-angle foot orthoses (FOs) is lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of different FO inversion angles on plantar pressure during gait in children with flatfoot. Twenty-one children with flexible flatfeet (mean age 9.9 years) were enrolled in this study. The plantar pressures were measured for the rearfoot; medial and lateral midfoot; and medial, central, and lateral forefoot as participants walked on a treadmill while wearing shoes only and shoes with the following 3 orthotic conditions: (i) orthosis with no inverted angle, (ii) orthosis with a 15° inverted angle, and (iii) orthosis with a 30° inverted angle. A one-way repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Bonferroni-adjusted post-hoc test was used to compare the mean values of each orthotic condition. Compared with the shoe only condition, the peak pressure decreased significantly under the medial forefoot and rearfoot with all FOs (p <0.05). However, no significant differences in the peak pressure under the medial forefoot and rearfoot were observed between the FOs. The peak pressure under the medial midfoot increased significantly with all FOs, and a maximal increase in the peak pressure was obtained with a 30° inverted angle orthosis. Furthermore, the contact area under the medial midfoot and rearfoot increased significantly with all FOs, compared with the shoe only condition (p <0.05). Again, no significant differences were observed between the FOs. For plantar pressure redistribution, a FO with a low inverted angle could be effective, accommodative, and convenient for children with flatfoot.

[Purpose] This study was conducted to examine the effect of pelvic stabilization exercise and 3D equipment exercise on adult women with Functional Leg-Length Discrepancy (FLLD). [Subjects and Methods] Twenty female students in their 20’s having FLLD without Structural Leg Length Discrepancy were selected. Exercise was performed for 50 min per session, three times a week, for six weeks. The Pelvic stabilization exercise (PSE) group performed pelvic stabilization exercises for 50 minutes, and the 3D exercise (3DE) group performed 3D Air Balance exercise for 10 minutes after performing the pelvic stabilization exercise program for 40 minutes. [Results] The PSE group showed statistically significant differences in tape measure method (TMM) and maximum pressure between pre-test and post-test, and 3DE showed statistically significant differences in TMM, the difference in maximum pressure, the difference in average pressure, and the difference in support area. At the end of the 6-week intervention, TMM, difference in maximum pressure, difference in average pressure, and difference in support area showed significantly greater reduction in the 3DE group. [Conclusion] The results show that 3D stabilization exercise was more effective at improving the stabilization of the deep muscles surrounding the pelvis and left-right muscular balance. We consider that 3D exercise should be included in exercise programs for improving pelvic cavity and spinal stability in the future.

• 3D-exercise
• FLLD
• Foot pressure