Foot-ground pressure pattern of flexible flatfoot in children, with and without correction of calcaneovalgus.

The footprint-measuring instrument was used to establish foot-ground pressure pattern of flexible flatfeet in male and female children, aged four to six years. Standing at ease, the children exerted most of their ground pressure by the posterior weight-bearing area (WBA). The rest was distributed between the middle and anterior WBAs, with the middle area usually exerting about 17%, and in extreme cases, as much as 30% of the total foot-ground pressure. Correcting valgus inclination of the calcaneus into neutral by inserting a leather wedge under the medial portion of the heel restored the longitudinal arch and the normal distribution of the foot-ground pressure of the standing child. The middle WBA exerted only 6% of the total pressure. This measuring system can differentiate between a normal foot, a flexible flatfoot, and a rigid flatfoot. It also can measure the exact amount of abnormal pressure being exerted by the middle WBA.