Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study
Foot position affects postural stability during upright standing; however, conflicting indications have been reported for the ideal foot placement during stabilometric exams. The aims of this study were to evaluate (1) the correlation between anthropometric measurements (AMs) and between-feet measur...
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2025-05-01
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| author | Paolo De Blasiis Ciro Ivan De Girolamo Allegra Fullin Paolo Caravaggi Assunta Tirelli Pasquale Arpaia Alberto Leardini Antonio De Luca |
| author_facet | Paolo De Blasiis Ciro Ivan De Girolamo Allegra Fullin Paolo Caravaggi Assunta Tirelli Pasquale Arpaia Alberto Leardini Antonio De Luca |
| author_sort | Paolo De Blasiis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Foot position affects postural stability during upright standing; however, conflicting indications have been reported for the ideal foot placement during stabilometric exams. The aims of this study were to evaluate (1) the correlation between anthropometric measurements (AMs) and between-feet measurements (BFMs) in self-selected comfortable foot position (SCFP) and (2) the effect of comfortable and standardized foot position (SFP) on plantar pressure and stabilometric parameters. Stabilometry was conducted on twenty healthy subjects in terms of SCFP and SFP. Correlation between AMs and BFMs in SCFP was investigated via Pearson’s analysis. Data variability was assessed using the coefficient of variation, and statistical differences between SCFP and SFP were evaluated via the Wilcoxon test. No correlation was found between AMs and BFMs. Subjects placed their feet nearly parallel in SCFP with a wider inter-heel distance. The variability of plantar pressure parameters was greater in SFP. A lower foot contact area on the right side and higher plantar pressures in the left midfoot region (<i>p</i>-value < 0.05) were found in SFP as compensatory foot adaptations. According to the present study, a comfortable foot position allows for the reduction in postural stability and plantar pressure parameter variability. This position may help improve statistical power when investigating statistical differences between conditions in stabilometry. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-697e9ef9f6c3476c87ff715a7efbe50d2025-08-20T02:33:43ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-05-011510541710.3390/app15105417Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational StudyPaolo De Blasiis0Ciro Ivan De Girolamo1Allegra Fullin2Paolo Caravaggi3Assunta Tirelli4Pasquale Arpaia5Alberto Leardini6Antonio De Luca7Department of Health Sciences, University of Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, ItalyDepartment of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, ItalyDepartment of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, ItalyMovement Analysis Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Neurological and Rehabilitation Sciences, University Hospital San Giovanni di Dio and Ruggi d’Aragona, 84131 Salerno, ItalyDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology (DIETI), University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Naples, ItalyMovement Analysis Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, Section of Human Anatomy, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, 80138 Naples, ItalyFoot position affects postural stability during upright standing; however, conflicting indications have been reported for the ideal foot placement during stabilometric exams. The aims of this study were to evaluate (1) the correlation between anthropometric measurements (AMs) and between-feet measurements (BFMs) in self-selected comfortable foot position (SCFP) and (2) the effect of comfortable and standardized foot position (SFP) on plantar pressure and stabilometric parameters. Stabilometry was conducted on twenty healthy subjects in terms of SCFP and SFP. Correlation between AMs and BFMs in SCFP was investigated via Pearson’s analysis. Data variability was assessed using the coefficient of variation, and statistical differences between SCFP and SFP were evaluated via the Wilcoxon test. No correlation was found between AMs and BFMs. Subjects placed their feet nearly parallel in SCFP with a wider inter-heel distance. The variability of plantar pressure parameters was greater in SFP. A lower foot contact area on the right side and higher plantar pressures in the left midfoot region (<i>p</i>-value < 0.05) were found in SFP as compensatory foot adaptations. According to the present study, a comfortable foot position allows for the reduction in postural stability and plantar pressure parameter variability. This position may help improve statistical power when investigating statistical differences between conditions in stabilometry.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/10/5417postural controlanthropometryfeet positionbaropodometrypressure plateproprioception |
| spellingShingle | Paolo De Blasiis Ciro Ivan De Girolamo Allegra Fullin Paolo Caravaggi Assunta Tirelli Pasquale Arpaia Alberto Leardini Antonio De Luca Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study Applied Sciences postural control anthropometry feet position baropodometry pressure plate proprioception |
| title | Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study |
| title_full | Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study |
| title_fullStr | Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study |
| title_short | Self-Selected Comfortable Foot Position in Upright Standing: Correlation with Anthropometric Measurements and Comparison to Standardized Foot Position During Stabilometric Exam—An Observational Study |
| title_sort | self selected comfortable foot position in upright standing correlation with anthropometric measurements and comparison to standardized foot position during stabilometric exam an observational study |
| topic | postural control anthropometry feet position baropodometry pressure plate proprioception |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/10/5417 |
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