TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mueller, Steffen
A1  - Carlsohn, Anja
A1  - Mueller, Juliane
A1  - Baur, Heiner
A1  - Mayer, Frank
T1  - Influence of Obesity on Foot Loading Characteristics in Gait for Children Aged 1 to 12 Years
T2  - PLoS one
N2  - Background Overweight and obesity are increasing health problems that are not restricted to adults only. Childhood obesity is associated with metabolic, psychological and musculoskeletal comorbidities. However, knowledge about the effect of obesity on the foot function across maturation is lacking. Decreased foot function with disproportional loading characteristics is expected for obese children. The aim of this study was to examine foot loading characteristics during gait of normal-weight, overweight and obese children aged 1-12 years. Methods Results Mean walking velocity was 0.95 +/- 0.25 m/s with no differences between normal-weight, overweight or obese children (p = 0.0841). Results show higher foot contact area, arch index, peak pressure and force time integral in overweight and obese children (p< 0.001). Obese children showed the 1.48-fold (1 year-old) to 3.49-fold (10 year-old) midfoot loading (FTI) compared to normal-weight. Conclusion Additional body mass leads to higher overall load, with disproportional impact on the midfoot area and longitudinal foot arch showing characteristic foot loading patterns. Already the feet of one and two year old children are significantly affected. Childhood overweight and obesity is not compensated by the musculoskeletal system. To avoid excessive foot loading with potential risk of discomfort or pain in childhood, prevention strategies should be developed and validated for children with a high body mass index and functional changes in the midfoot area. The presented plantar pressure values could additionally serve as reference data to identify suspicious foot loading patterns in children.
Y1  - 2016
UR  - https://publishup.uni-potsdam.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/45598
SN  - 1932-6203
VL  - 11
SP  - 1710
EP  - 1717
PB  - PLoS
CY  - San Fransisco
ER  -