Association between the levels of physical activity and plantar pressure in 6-14-year-old children

BACKGROUND: The main purpose of the study was to determine whether lower levels of physical activity were associated with higher plantar pressure generated under each foot. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 641 children aged 6–14 years (age(mean ± SD) = 9.7 ± 2.4 years; height(mean ± SD) = 143.6 ± 15.3 cm, weight(mean ± SD) = 37.6 ± 13.4 kg; body-mass index(mean ± SD) = 17.6 ± 3.2 kg/m(2); 44.2% girls). We used EMED –XL pressure platform to measure force time integral, pressure-time integral, contact-time and contact area, peak plantar pressure and mean plantar pressure of the right and the left foot during the gait analysis. The level of physical activity was measured by using The Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ–C). The associations were calculated by using generalized estimating equations with linear regression models. RESULTS: Lower levels of physical activity were associated with higher force- and pressure-time integrals, longer contact time and higher peak and mean plantar pressures in both feet. CONCLUSION: Our study shows that the level of physical activity is strongly and inversely associated with plantar pressure in a sample of 6–14 year olds.