Flat feet have been associated with altered flat foot function, including prolonged calcaneal inversion, increased tibial internal rotation, increased forefoot abduction, reduced efficiency of gait, and reduced shock absorption.
What author did?
A study was conducted to find out why people who have flat feet show a higher risk of damage to musculoskeletal system than those who have normal feet.
To observe the kinematic differences, while ascending slope, in individuals with flat feet and normal feet they used three dimensional gait analyses.
They conducted study on
30 subjects.
15 with normal foot
15 with flat foot. They used treadmill.
They concluded that both groups showed significant differences in the sagittal, frontal and transverse planes according to the changes in speed. The results for the lower extremity kinematic features of the subjects during gait on an ascending slope showed that overall, their joint angles increased according to the increase in gait speed, and there were significant differences between the two groups with respect to hip adduction (frontal plane) and the hip internal rotation (transverse plane) angle.
hip adduction and the internal rotation angle on the lower extremity have a tendency to increase in response to an increase in gait velocity on an ascending slope, we can expect that the hip adductor muscles and internal rotator muscles of a subject with flat feet would be used much more than those of a subject with normal feet when they perform actions which require a lot of power, such as walking on an ascending slope and walking quickly.
Our views from study :
The person with flat feet will have weak abductor and hip external rotator. Concentrate on glutes strengthening which drives hip in neutral position.
This phenomenon may cause following issues
• Internal rotation of tibia
• Weak posterior and lateral glut med
• Increased pressure between patella and femur
• Tight ITB
• Genu valgum
• LBA
• Increased tibia shock
Referances:
1. A Three-dimensional Gait Analysis of People with Flat Arched Feet on an Ascending Slope Myoung-Kwon Kim, PT, PhD1), Yun-Seop Lee, PT, PhD