Pedobarographic results in children with insole treatment

Introduction: So called proprioceptive insoles are supposed to improve the foot shape as well as to modulate plantar surface sensibility thereby influencing posture and coordination. We evaluated the pedobarographic results of 5 to 12 year old children to prove this effect and the usefulness of pedobarography in children. Patients/materials and methods: We assessed 15 children (6 girls, 9 boys) with amean age of 8.4 years (SD 2.2 years), whowore proprioceptive insoles (insole group) prescribed by their physician for at least one year (mean 3.2 years, 1–6 years). Their pedobarographic results aswell as their results of some coordination tests [1] were compared to an ageand BMI-matched group (control group) of 30 children (16 girls, 14 boys; mean age 8.4 years, SD 1.9 years). The mean BMI was 17.9 kg/m2 (SD 3.4). The pedobarography was performed with the Emed System, Novel, Germany. SPSS was used for statistical analysis (Mann Whitney Test, p<0.05). Results: There were found no statistical differences (Table 1). Discussion and conclusions: An effect on the arch index or the coordination caused by special proprioceptive insoles could not be found in our controlled study. It cannot be determinedwhether the children in the insole group improved and showed normal results caused by wearing the insoles. We think that pedobarography is a useful tool to evaluate children’s feet dynamically in order to get more knowledge about the natural history of feet development [2] thereby aiming at the optimal time for conservative and surgical interventions. Further reading