Falls are common among older adults. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the relationship between foot anatomical structural variations and balance in older adults and quantify foot posture and stabilometry as predictors of fall risk. This case-control study of older adults classified cases or controls according to falls in the last five years. All subjects were healthy women and men > 65 years old (n = 164), who were divided into two groups: 83 individuals who had suffered from a fall in the previous five years (case group) and 81 individuals who had not suffered from a fall (control group). Hallux abductus valgus (HAV) and tailor’s bunion are stability-determining factors. Women have a higher probability of falling. HAV (p = 0.042) and tailor’s bunion (p = 0.069) also increased the fall probability. Morphological foot variations (HAV and tailor’s bunion) linked to gender and age increase fall risk among older adults. In women fallers with HAV, there was a higher possibility of falling (63.9%). According to age, in older adults with HAV, the percentage of falls is high (62%). Fallers with tailor’s bunion (60.7%) are more numerous than fallers without this pathology. Older adults with HAV and tailor´s bunion had twice the probability of suffering a fall than older people without foot anatomical structural. Foot morphology is decisive in falling risk.

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Background One of the major public health problems of the 21 st century is obesity. Baropodometry is commonly used to determine specific loads on the plantar surface of the foot and the comportment of the body center of pressure (CoP). To evaluate the redistribution of the baropodometric parameters: static and dynamic plantar pressures and antero – posterior CoP, by decreasing body weight. Methods A sample of 43 subjects (24 male, 19 female) participated in the study. A hypocaloric diet was designed with the aim to reduce their body weight. The baropodometric exam was performed in two occasions: weight 1 – Session 1 and weight 2 – Session 2, when they had lost between 12 and 18 kg. The foot was divided in 9 areas: heel, midfoot, 5 metatarsal heads (MTHs), Hallux, 2-5 toes. The Footwork® pressure platform was used to carry out the evaluation. Results Subjects reduce an 11.59% their mean weight. Foot pressure decrease was statistically significant between the first and second measurements (p < 0.05). For the static on the Hallux, 2 nd MTH, 3 rd MTH, 5 th MTH and heel, while for the dynamic the pressure decreases on the whole study areas except on the 2 nd and 5 th toes. For the CoP, a notable posterior displacement was observed. There were no gender differences.Conclusion We can conclude that weight loss affected positively to both plantar pressures and CoP, since statistically significant changes were observed in the baropodometric parameters between the two times studied.