Static measures of calcaneal deviation and arch angle as predictors of rearfoot motion during walking

Clinicians commonly assess static alignment of the foot with the assumption that it is predictive of its movement during walking and the risk of injury. This study investigated the relationship between clinical measures of calcaneal deviation and medial arch angle in standing and three-dimensional rearfoot movement during the stance phase of walking in 19 young healthy males. Correlations were performed among the variables of maximum eversion, maximum abduction, the range of inversion-eversion and the range of abduction-adduction. The only significant correlation was between calcaneal deviation and maximum eversion (r = 0.46, p < 0.05). We concluded that the static measures of calcaneal deviation and medial arch angle are limited in their ability to predict three-dimensional rearfoot movement during walking in asymptomatic people.