Clinical and Biomechanical Risk Factors of Patients Diagnosed with Hallux Valgus

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the clinical and plantar loading variables related to hallux valgus. Fifty-one healthy control subjects and 40 subjects with a diagnosis of moderate hallux valgus deformity of similar age and body weight were recruited for this study. Clinical measurements of pain, first metatarsophalangeal joint range of motion, and single-leg resting calcaneal stance position were obtained. Biomechanical measurements were obtained using a capacitive pressure platform. Plantar loading variables were calculated for seven regions of the plantar surface. A univariate analysis followed by a stepwise logistic regression was used to analyze the data. The results indicated that high values for pain, single-leg resting calcaneal stance position, hallux region peak pressure and force–time integral, and central forefoot region force–time integral increased the likelihood of hallux valgus. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 93(2): 97-103, 2003)