Peak plantar pressure as a risk factor for lower extremity overuse injury among infantry soldiers

The majority of reported injuries among military populations are injuries due to cumulative repetitive microtrauma — overuse injuries. Plantar pressure measurement is a simple tool to analyse lower limb biomechanics through the assessment of forces applied to the foot. This study aimed to determine the relation between peak plantar pressure and lower extremity overuse. Sixty-six active-duty infantry male soldiers, with mean age 29.7 years (range 22–40 years), and mean service time 5.2 years (range 1–15 years) participated. The highest peak plantar pressure (PPP) at the forefoot occurred at the hallux (cases: 50.82 n/cm², SD = 38.84; control: 34.39 n/cm², SD = 28.03) and 3^rd metatarsal head (cases: 54.40 n/cm², SD = 33.83; control: 49.16 n/cm², SD = 28.87). The study demonstrated elevated PPP among cases. Statistically significant results were found at the hallux (c2(1) = 6.8; p = 0.01), medial heel (c2(1) = 5.18; p = 0.02) and lateral heel (c2(1) = 12.12; p < 0.01) regions. The results show that plantar pressure assessment could be used as a useful screening tool for early lower extremity overuse injury detection.