Iliopsoas muscle thickness and pelvic alignment in pronated and normal foot postures.

It is hypothesized that the subtalar hyperpronation may provoke the development of a biomechanical chain of events in lower extremity alignment. Several studies have shown that pelvic alignment may alter in the presence of immediate foot hyperpronation induced by external forces. It is unknown whether these alterations are presented in chronic foot hyperpronation or not. It is also unknown if these potential postural changes could affect iliopsoas muscle size. Therefore, it appears necessary to carry out thorough research in this study. Twenty nine females with pronated foot posture and twenty seven females with normal foot posture participated in this study. The iliopsoas muscle was measured using ultrasound imaging (USI). Pelvic angle (PA) was measured using reflective markers and digital photography. Intrarater reliability of USI for the iliopsoas muscle thickness was also measured. The results indicated that the iliopsoas muscle thickness and the PA were not different in individuals with pronated foot compared to the normal foot group. However, a good intrarater reliability of USI was found for measuring the iliopsoas muscle thickness.

Ultrasound evaluation of the quadriceps muscles in pronated foot posture.

OBJECTIVE: The main goal of this study was to investigate the size of all portions of the quadriceps muscles in individuals with pronated foot posture compared to normal foot posture using ultrasound imaging. DESIGN: Twenty nine females with pronated foot posture and 29 age-, body weight-, body height-matched females with normal foot posture were recruited from university communities. The muscle thicknesses of the rectus femoris (RF), vastus medialis (VM), vastus medialis oblique (VMO), vastus lateralis (VL) and vastus intermedius (VI) were measured using ultrasound imaging. RESULTS: The thicknesses of the RF and VMO were significantly smaller in individuals with pronated foot posture compared to normal foot posture (p<0.05). No significant differences were observed in the VM, VL, and VI muscle thicknesses in both groups. CONCLUSION: Based on the results of the present study, it seems that besides the foot and lower leg muscles, an integrated assessment of proximal knee muscles, especially quadriceps, is required in individuals with pronated foot posture.

Reliability of digital photography for assessing lower extremity alignment in individuals with flatfeet and normal feet types.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the intratester reliability of digital photographic method for quantifying static lower extremity alignment in individuals with flatfeet and normal feet types. METHODS: Thirteen females with flexible flatfeet and nine females with normal feet types were recruited from university communities. Reflective markers were attached over the participant's body landmarks. Frontal and sagittal plane photographs were taken while the participants were in a standardized standing position. The markers were removed and after 30 min the same procedure was repeated. Pelvic angle, quadriceps angle, tibiofemoral angle, genu recurvatum, femur length and tibia length were measured from photographs using the Image j software. RESULTS: All measured variables demonstrated good to excellent intratester reliability using digital photography in both flatfeet (ICC: 0.79-0.93) and normal feet type (ICC: 0.84-0.97) groups. CONCLUSION: The findings of the current study indicate that digital photography is a highly reliable method of measurement for assessing lower extremity alignment in both flatfeet and normal feet type groups.