- Athletic Footwear Research by Industry and Academia

In 1990 the Athletic Footwear Association (AFA) (1) released a report entitled “American Youth and Sports Participation” that examined teenagers’ (ages 10-18 years) feelings about their sport involvement. This report was the culmination of an extensive study of more than 10,000 young people from 11 cities across the U.S. in which issues related to why teenagers participate, why they quit, and their feelings about winning were addressed.1 The results highlighted in the AFA report indicate that (a) participation in organized sports declines sharply as youngsters get older, (b) “fun” is the key reason for involvement and “lack of fun” is one of the primary reasons for discontinuing, (c) winning plays less of a role than most adults would think, and (d) not all athletes have the same motivations for their involvement.

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Does choice of athletic footwear affect musculoskeletal injury risk in US Coast Guard recruits? A retrospective cohort study.

10.1101/2022.01.03.22268706 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

John J Fraser ◽

Ryan Pommier ◽

Andrew J MacGregor ◽

Amy B Silder ◽

Todd C Sander

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Injury Risk ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Military Training ◽

Coast Guard ◽

Overuse Injuries ◽

Common Mechanism ◽

Athletic Footwear

Context: Musculoskeletal injuries (MSKIs) are ubiquitous during initial entry military training, with overuse injuries in the lower extremities the most frequent. A common mechanism for overuse injuries is running, an activity that is an integral part of United States Coast Guard (USCG) training and a requirement for graduation. Objective: Assess the effects of athletic footwear choice on lower quarter MSKI risk in USCG recruits. Design: Descriptive Epidemiological Study Setting: USCG Training Center, Cape May, NJ Participants: A retrospective cohort study was performed in which 1229 recruits (1038 males, 191 females) were allowed to self-select athletic footwear during training. A group of 2876 recruits (2260 males, 616 females) who trained under a policy that required obligatory wear of prescribed athletic shoes served as a control. Main Outcome Measures: Demographic data and physical performance were derived from administrative records. Injury data were abstracted from a medical tracking database. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess group, age, sex, height, body mass, and run times on MSKI outcomes. Results: Ankle-foot, leg, knee and lumbopelvic-hip complex diagnoses were ubiquitous in both groups (experimental: 20.37 to 29.34 per 1000 recruits; control: 18.08 to 25.59 per 1000 recruits). Group was not a significant factor for any of the injuries assessed. Sex was a significant factor in all injury types, with female recruits demonstrating ~2.00 greater odds of experiencing running-related injuries (RRIs), overuse injuries, or any MSKI in general. When considering ankle-foot or bone stress injuries, the risk in female recruits was 3.73 to 4.11 greater odds than their male counterparts. Run time was a significant predictor in RRI, all overuse injuries, and for any MSKI in general. Conclusion: While footwear choice did not influence MSKI risk in USCG recruits, female sex was a primary, nonmodifiable intrinsic risk factor.

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A Biomechanical Investigation of Athletic Footwear Traction Performance: Integration of Gait Analysis with Computational Simulation

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10051672 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 1672

Author(s):

Kao-Shang Shih ◽

Shu-Yu Jhou ◽

Wei-Chun Hsu ◽

Ching-Chi Hsu ◽

Jun-Wen Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Product Development ◽

Gait Analysis ◽

Contact Area ◽

Computational Simulation ◽

Mechanical Tests ◽

Real Contact Area ◽

Fe Model ◽

Real Contact ◽

Footwear Industry ◽

Athletic Footwear

Evaluations are vital to quantify the functionalities of athletic footwear, such as the performance of slip resistance, shock absorption, and rebound. Computational technology has progressed to become a promising solution for accelerating product development time and providing customized products in order to keep up with the competitive contemporary footwear market. In this research, the effects of various tread pattern designs on traction performance in a normal gait were analyzed by employing an approach that integrated computational simulation and gait analysis. A state-of-the-art finite element (FE) model of a shoe was developed by digital sculpting technology. A dynamic plantar pressure distribution was automatically applied to interpret individualized subject conditions. The traction performance and real contact area between the shoe and the ground during the gait could be characterized and predicted. The results suggest that the real contact area and the structure of the outsole tread design influence the traction performance of the shoe in dry conditions. This computational process is more efficient than mechanical tests in terms of both cost and time, and it could bring a noticeable benefit to the footwear industry in the early design phases of product development.

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