A Study on the Effects of Lateral-Wedge Insoles on Plantar-Pressure Pattern for Medial Knee Osteoarthritis Using the Wearable Sensing Insole

• Published in: Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 23; no. 1; p. 84
• Main Authors: Hsu, Wei-Ching, Chou, Li-Wei, Chiu, Hsiao-Yen, Hsieh, Chang-Wei, Hu, Wen-Pin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 22.12.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Alzheimer's disease; Analysis; Arthritis; Biomechanics; Body weight; Care and treatment; Center of pressure; disease; Feet; Gait; Heels; Hospitals; Insoles; Knee; knee osteoarthritis; lateral wedge insole; Osteoarthritis; Pain; Plantar pressure; Pressure distribution; pressure-sensing insole; Questionnaires; Walking; Womens health; Taiwan; Asia; disease; lateral wedge insole; pressure-sensing insole; knee osteoarthritis; plantar pressure
• ISSN: 1424-8220; 1424-8220
• DOI: 10.3390/s23010084

Patients with knee osteoarthritis have a unique plantar-pressure pattern during walking, and lateral-wedge insoles are one of the treatment options. Participants were randomly assigned to either the lateral-wedge insole group or the ordinary insole group. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and plantar-pressure test scores were evaluated at the baseline and at 20 weeks. Plantar pressure data were collected using a pressure insole with 89 sensing locations. In the ordinary insole group, the function and total WOMAC scores decreased significantly (function score, 24.8 (baseline) to 16.5 (week 20); total score, 34.9 (baseline) to 24.6 (week 20)). During walking, the transverse width of the center of pressure as a percentage of foot width (%Trans) significantly increased in the ordinary insole group (baseline, 6.3%; week 20, 14.8%). In addition, the values of partial foot pressure as a percentage of body weight (%PFP) on the forefoot (baseline, 30.3%; week 20, 39.2%) and heel (baseline, 28.1%; week 20, 16.9%) also increased significantly in the ordinary insole group. Significant group-by-time interaction effects were observed for partial foot pressure per body weight in the forefoot ( = 0.031) and heel ( = 0.024). In the ordinary insole group, the plantar pressure on the heel significantly decreased ( = 0.011) and that on the forefoot significantly increased ( = 0.023). In contrast, plantar pressure remained stable in all regions in the lateral-wedge insole group. Thus, lateral-wedge insoles may protect against plantar pressure deterioration in patients with knee osteoarthritis.