Does a Physical Education lesson affect foot morphology in school-aged children?

Abstract

Background:To analyze the changes in foot morphology in school-age children after a Physical Education lesson. Methods: A total of 10 school-age children (five girls and five boys) with a mean age of 9.3 ± 0.5 years that voluntarily participated in this study were included. Measurements of both feet were obtained using a 3D foot digitizer model IFU-S-01 (Japan) in two different moments, before and after a physical education lesson (per-exercise and post-exercise), where different activities involving displacements, jumps, and landings were performed. Results: By comparing foot morphology before and after exercise, significant differences in the arch height were found, which increased after exercise (p<0.05). Forefoot width shows greater changes after exercise but without significant differences (p= 0.07; effect size [ES] = 0.2). Furthermore, a positive correlation between forefoot width and the arch height (p<0.05) and a negative correlation between the distance from the heel to the first metatarsal and the ball width (r = -0.7; p<0.05), were observed. Conclusions: The type of activities undertaken during physical education lesson (displacements, jumps, and landings) increased the pressure on the forefoot, which would lead to larger arch height. Development of children's sport footwear systems should take into account the foot lengths, widths, and heights, for a better fit, preventing future musculoskeletal injuries.