Clinical Research on Foot & Ankle
Open Access

Research Article

Weak TGS Correlates with Hallux Valgus in 10-12 Year Old Girls: A Cross-Sectional Study

Keisuke Matsubara^1*, Seishiro Tasaka¹, Takahiko Fukumoto², Shu Nishiguchi³, Naoto Fukutani¹, Yuto Tashiro¹, Hidehiko Shirooka¹, Yuma Nozaki¹, Hinako Hirata¹, Moe Yamaguchi¹, Tomofumi Matsushita¹ and Tomoki Aoyama¹

¹Department of Physical Therapy, Human Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

²Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Health Science, Kio University, Nara, Japan

³Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, Tokyo University of Technology, Tokyo, Japan

*Corresponding Author:

Matsubara K
Department of Physical Therapy
Human Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine
Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan, 53 Kawahara-cho
Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
Tel: +81-75-751-3935
Fax: +81-75-751-3909
E-mail: k.matsubara.kyoto@gmail.com

Received Date: June 09, 2016; Accepted Date:June 20, 2016 ; Published Date: June 27, 2016

Citation: Matsubara K, Tasaka S, Fukumoto T, Nishiguchi S, Fukutani N, et al. (2016) Weak TGS Correlates with Hallux Valgus in 10–12 Year Old Girls: A Cross-Sectional Study. Clin Res Foot Ankle 4:189. doi:10.4172/2329-910X.1000189

Copyright: © 2016 Matsubara K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Objective: Hallux valgus is one of the most common foot deformities. It is considered that hallux valgus is associated with foot arch height, footwear, sex and so on. Toe grip strength (TGS) is important for developing foot posture because it attributes to foot arch height. The relationship between hallux valgus and TGS in children is unknown, although childhood is a key period for developing foot posture. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between hallux valgus angle (HVA) and TGS in children. Methods: A total of 671 (1342 feet) 10-12 year old children (boys, n = 317, age = 10.3 ± 0.7; girls, n = 354, age = 10.2 ± 0.7; means ± standard deviation [SD]) participated in this study. HVA, the angle between the first metatarsal axis and the proximal phalangeal axis, was measured using a goniometer. TGS was measured using a toe grip dynamometer. Differences in the data between boys and girls were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test. According to sex, single and multiple linear regression analyses with generalized estimating equations were performed for the relationship between HVA and TGS. The level of statistical significance was set at p ˂ 0.05. Results: The TGS and HVA of participants’ feet were 13.3 ± 4.0 kg (boys, 13.4 ± 3.9 kg; girls, 13.1 ± 4.1 kg) and 7.9 ± 5.0° (boys, 6.7 ± 4.5°; girls, 9.2 ± 5.1°, p ˂ 0.001). The multiple linear regression analysis in girls indicated a correlation between TGS and HVA (β = -0.098, p = 0.045), whereas in boys, there was no correlation. Conclusions: HVA is greater in girls than in boys, and in girls, weak TGS correlates with hallux valgus. Weak TGS may attribute to hallux valgus in potential stage or early stage. Strengthening TGS may be as promising tool for preventing the onset of hallux valgus and for developing good foot posture.

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