Plantar pressure sensors indicate women to have a significantly higher peak pressure on the hallux, toes, forefoot, and medial of the foot compared to men

Abstract

Background: Sex-related differences of plantar pressure distribution during activities should be thoroughly inspected as it can help establish treatment and prevention strategies for foot and ankle problems. In-shoe measurement systems are preferable without space and activity restrictions; however, previously reported systems are still heavy and bulky and induce unnatural movement. Therefore, a slim and light plantar pressure sensor was newly developed to detect the effect of sex difference on plantar pressure during standing and walking. Methods: One-hundred healthy adult volunteers (50 women and 50 men) were recruited. Ten plantar pressure sensors were implanted in a 1-mm thick insole, with a total weight of 29 g. Plantar pressure was recorded with 200 Hz during 3 s of standing and while walking 10 steps. The maximum loads during standing and walking were analyzed in each sensor, and the results were compared between different areas of the foot in the antero-posterior direction and the medio-lateral direction and between different time points. The movement of the center of pressure (COP) during walking was also evaluated. Analyses were adjusted for body mass index and gait speed. Results: The movement of COP was constant for both sexes. In all cases, the maximum load was observed on the medial of the foot. Women had a significantly higher peak pressure on the hallux, toes, forefoot, and medial aspect of the foot compared to men while standing and walking (p < .05). Conclusions: A newly introduced in-shoe plantar pressure sensor demonstrated a typical loading transition pattern of the foot. Furthermore, higher plantar pressure in the forefoot was detected in healthy women as compared to men during standing and walking activities.

A Pilot Study of Plantar Mechanics Distributions and Fatigue Profiles after Running on a Treadmill: Using a Support Vector Machine Algorithm

“…Although this study did not include cases of hallux valgus (HV), females had a higher load of the hallux than males. Studies reported a meta-analysis that estimated that female HV prevalence (30%) was 2.3 times greater than that in males (13%) [ 21 ]. Although many studies cannot reach a unified conclusion, there was no denying that gender differences in plantar mechanical parameters may be one of the reasons for the increase in hallux valgus in females.…”

“…Males and females have different bone structures and muscle strength, and studies have shown that females are more likely than males to sustain lower limb injuries while running [ 21 , 22 ]. Females are more prone than males to have ligamentous laxity of the ankle joint, and females are approximately twice as likely as males to have ankle sprains [ 23 ].…”

Healthcare Monitoring Using Low-Cost Sensors to Supplement and Replace Human Sensation: Does It Have Potential to Increase Independent Living and Prevent Disease?

“… Summary of typical algorithms used for processing data acquired by low-cost sensors including LR [ 20 ], DT [ 21 ], FFT [ 22 ], SVM [ 22 ], NB [ 23 ], SA [ 29 ], WT [ 34 ], LDA [ 40 ], ANN [ 42 ], HMM [ 56 ] and KNN [ 65 ]. …”

Insole-Based Systems for Health Monitoring: Current Solutions and Research Challenges

“…Most insole-based systems reported in the literature were tested on a small group of individuals of same gender, ethnicity and/or age. This poses a problem as individuals of different genders and ethnicities are known to have different in foot morphologies [174,175]. As a result, a standard placement of sensors may not be suitable for all users of the device.…”