Biomechanics

Biomechanical assessment is important to determine what is happening to the foot, leg and trunk on weight bearing and during walking. It may indicate that some sort of orthotic may be needed to keep the foot in the best position to minimise symptoms not only in the feet, but also in the ankles, knees, back, shoulders and head.

When the human body was designed, we didn’t walk on concrete or tarmac, but on uneven surfaces of differing degrees of hardness. We have a foot which is a miracle of mechanical engineering which adapts to the ground we walk on. The mid foot is made up of many tiny bones which form arches, the bones acting like keystones. If your foot is not in its strong position (with all these bones lined up) when you are walking on a flat surface, the arches distort and sooner or later problems are likely to develop. The timing of this will depend on many factors, including footwear, occupation, weight, lifestyle. Generally, long thin mobile feet go out of position more readily than short compact feet with tight ligaments. As the feet are our foundation and are literally at the bottom of a pile of bones stacked one on top of another, if something at the bottom is out of alignment, everything above it is affected to a greater or lesser degree.

At Sole to Soul we work with Pegasus Orthoses in Northern Ireland. This company produces very high quality, low bulk CAD – CAM devices to correct and support the feet and realign the body.