Perception of footwear comfort and its relationship with the foot structure among youngest-old women and men

Ewa Puszczalowska-Lizis; Karolina Koziol; Jaroslaw Omorczyk

doi:10.7717/peerj.12385

Perception of footwear comfort and its relationship with the foot structure among youngest-old women and men

PeerJ. 2021 Oct 19:9:e12385. doi: 10.7717/peerj.12385. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Ewa Puszczalowska-Lizis¹, Karolina Koziol², Jaroslaw Omorczyk³

Affiliations

¹ Medical College, Institute of Health Sciences, University of Rzeszow, Rzeszow, Poland.
² Health Center Tuchow, Tuchow, Poland.
³ Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, Institute of Sport, University of Physical Education in Krakow, Krakow, Poland.

Abstract

Background: Adequate footwear comfort and functionality are important regardless of age, but they become particularly important in the youngest-old women and men, mainly due to the fact that this age range is the initial period of old age with changes in shoe preferences. The aim of this study was to assess the perception of footwear comfort and its relationship with the feet structure in youngest-old women and men.

Methods: The cross-sectional study covered community dwellers living on their own aged 65-74 years (50 women; 50 men). The feet characteristics were measured using the CQ-ST podoscope (Electronic System, Ltd, EU), and the perception of footwear comfort was assessed with a visual analogue scale. The assessment took into account gender-specific footwear of a certain brand (Befado Dr orto).

Results: Statistically significant intergender differences were observed in the perception of footwear comfort with respect to the shoe heel width (p = 0.022), the arch height (p = 0.013), the overall comfort (p = 0.049) and the material properties of the footwear (p = 0.017). In women, there were statistically significant positive relationships among the heel angle (γ) and the perception of footwear comfort in terms of heel cushioning (p = 0.021), forefoot cushioning (p = 0.015), arch height (p = 0.029). In men, there was a statistically significant negative relationship of the left foot Clarke's angle with the heel height (p = 0.043), and a positive relationship between the right foot width and the arch height (p = 0.044).

Conclusions: Youngest-old women, compared to men of the same age range, have a higher perception of shoe comfort in terms of the shoe heel width, the arch height, the overall comfort of the footwear and the material properties of the footwear. The appropriate profile and construction of the shoe allows for an increase in the contact surface of the foot with the shoe, hence the improvement in the perception of footwear comfort in people with lowered arch or widened forefoot.

Keywords: Footwear comfort; Health policy; Human foot; Public health.

Grants and funding

The authors received no funding for this work.