Plantar pressure differences among adults with mild flexible flatfoot, severe flexible flatfoot and normal foot when walking on level surface, walking upstairs and downstairs.

The study included only young, female college students, so results may not apply to older adults, males, or people with other health conditions. The study measured pressure at the midfoot only, so it does not describe loading on the heel, toes, or forefoot. The paper states that flatfoot treatment is controversial but does not test any treatment or measure pain or function, so it does not show that these pressure differences cause symptoms or require intervention. The authors conclude that severe flatfoot may need treatment to prevent deformation, but this is an inference from pressure data, not a tested outcome.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Do not assume that mild flexible flatfoot is functionally normal. While these feet looked like normal feet on level ground and stairs, they showed different arch loading when walking downstairs, which is a common daily activity that this study missed in standard level-walking assessments.