• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.55-62
• /
• 2012

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of high heeled shoes on the static & dynamic balance performance and electromyography(EMG) of back and lower extremity muscles. Materials & Methods : Sixteen women participated in this study. Subjects were composed two groups with LL shoes group and higher heel shoes group. We carried out Romberg's test and muscle activity of left and right Paraspinalis, Quadriceps femoris, Tibialis anterior, Gastrocnemius muscles by EMG in order to determine static balance performance according heel height. Using by Biorescue(Incenierie company), we trained subject to transfer of COG each direction(Anterior, posterior, Right, Left), we carried out this test for distance, surface, distance/surface in order to determine dynamic balance performance according heel height. The data were analyzed by independent t-test between lower and high heel height using SPSS(ver. 17.0)/PC program. Results : There was significant difference of distance(p<.05) of weight perturbation between lower and high group in dynamic balance performance and EMG value of left Gastrocnemius(p<.05), both Tibialis anterior(p<.05) muscle in static balance performance. Conclusions : Height of heel has effect on dynamic balance performance in distance of the Anterior, posterior direction. EMG of Gastrocnemius and Tibialis anterior muscles were affected by Romberg's test.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.135-143
• /
• 2011

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate onset timing of vastus medialis oblique(VMO) relative to vastus lateralis(VL) the VMO/VL electromyographic(EMG) ratio according to heel height Methods: A repeated measures design was used. Fifteen healthy female college students with no known knee musculoskeletal dysfunction were recruited this study. They carried out a standardised stair acent activity under 4 conditions; barefoot, and with heel height of 1, 3, 7 cm. Muscle activity was measured by surface EMG (Myosystem 1400A, Noraxon Inc., U.S.A). Data were analysed using $1{\times}4$ repeated measures ANOVA. Results: Onset timing differed with heel height(p<.05). However, the VMO/VL EMG ratio was not significantly difference between conditions. Conclusion: We found that 7 cm heel height delayed in VMO onset compared with 3 cm heel height during stair ascent, but no change in the relative EMG intensity of VMO and VL as measured by th VMO/VL ratio. The findings indicate that high-heeled shoes may have disadvantages in knee stability because of delayed onset of VMO. Due to a lack of knee joint stability, wearing of high heeled shoes should be avoided.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.9-16
• /
• 2015

PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to identify the effects of shoulder abduction strength and EMG activities of the selected scapular and shoulder muscles during isometric shoulder abduction. METHODS: Thirty-four healthy young females were recruited for this study. Surface EMG equipment with inline force sensor was used to determine the shoulder abductor strength and the activity of the serratus anterior (SA), upper trapezius (UT), lower trapezius (LT), and middle deltoid (MD) during three shoe heel height conditions: (1) barefoot, (2) 3-cm shoe heel height, and (3) 7-cm shoe heel height. RESULTS: Isometric shoulder strength showed statistically significant difference among the conditions (p<0.05), and post-hoc test showed lower strength during the 7-cm condition ($49.98{\pm}17.56kg$) than during the barefoot ($44.97{\pm}20.15kg$) and 3-cm conditions ($36.59{\pm}17.07kg$). Furthermore, EMG activities of the SA, UT, and MD appeared to be statistically significantly different among the conditions, with lower values in the 7-cm condition compared to the barefoot condition (p<0.05). EMG ratios (MD/UT and SA/UT) were lower during the 7-cm condition than during the barefoot condition (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that isometric shoulder abduction strength and EMG activities of scapular and shoulder muscles may be adversely changed with increasing shoe heel height.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.16 no.3
• /
• pp.37-48
• /
• 1997

It is very common for women wear shoes with a high heel. It has been known that the high heel could disfigure the foot shape and cause various joint problems including back pain. However, few quantitative studies have been conducted. Therefore, in this study, the low back muscle has been investigated in order to find fatifue effect due to different heights of the heel. In particular, 0, 4, 6 and 8cm heel and two different shapes of heel have been used for an experiment. Ten healthy female subjects volunteered for the study. Isometric Trunk Exertion Frame(ITEF) and Electromyography were used to measure tha Median Frequency via Spectral analysis. The results indicated that the heel height significantly affected the local muscle fatigue of the back. After post hoc analysis, it was found that a proper heel height ougth to be lower than 5cm not to have severely fatigued back muscle after a casual walk for an hour. Such results could be applies to female industrial workers in order to prevent a cumulative trauma disorder of the back, and also to design a female dress shoes minimizing low back fatigue.

• Journal of International Academy of Physical Therapy Research
• /
• v.2 no.2
• /
• pp.324-328
• /
• 2011

The purpose of this study is to measure the effect of change in heel height on lower extremities activity of young women on high-heeled shoes that young women prefer from more kinetic and realistic perspective as this study changes the degree of slope on a treadmill. The study subjects are 15 young and healthy women who do not have any external injuries or problem with walking and understand the purpose of this study clearly. They wore three different height of heels(1cm, 7cm, 12cm) and walked on a treadmill at a constant speed of 3km/h. EMG value of four muscles (anterior tibial muscle, gastrocnemius muscle, straight muscle of thigh, and biceps muscle of thigh) were collected when walking and the change according to the height of heels were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. Multiple comparison analysis on anterior tibial muscle and heel height showed that the group with 12cm heel showed significantly high muscle activation compared to the groups with 1cm and 7cm heels. The result of this study can be used for various perspectives from inferring and mediating problems caused by wearing high heels on different ground slopes for a long time.

• Physical Therapy Korea
• /
• v.15 no.4
• /
• pp.1-9
• /
• 2008

The purpose of this study was to assess the peak plantar pressure distribution under foot areas according to the height of heel lifts in obese adults and non-obese adults during walking. Thirty-one participants volunteered for this experiment. The average body mass index (BMI) value of the fourteen subjects in the obese group was $26.5{\pm}1.4kg/m^2$ (from 25.1 to 29.3 $kg/m^2$), and of seventeen subjects in the non-obese group was $20.0{\pm}1.1kg/m^2$ (from 18.7 to 22.7 $kg/m^2$). The subject ambulated while walking in the sneakers, walking with 2 cm heel lifts, and walking with 4 cm heel lifts in the shoes. We measured the peak plantar pressure under the hallux, 1st, 2nd, 3~4th, and 5th metatarsal head (MTH), mi foot, and heel using F-scan system. The obese group had significantly higher peak plantar pressure under all foot areas than the non-obese group regardless of the height of heel lifts (p<.05). The peak plantar pressure under the 5th MTH and heel was significantly decreased, also the peak plantar pressure under hallux, 1st, and 2nd MTH was significantly increased according to the height of heel lifts in the obese group and non-obese group (p<.05), We proposed that individuals with heel lifts in shoes should be careful, as there is high plantar pressure under the forefoot.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.29 no.5
• /
• pp.789-795
• /
• 2010

This study aimed to investigate the effect of differing heel height on static balance and muscle activation of ankle joint during standing. Twenty-one young females volunteered to participate in this study. To measure balance function and EMG activity of tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius muscles, the subjects were asked to perform 1-min standing with eyes open and closed state under 3 different heel heights: barefoot, 3cm, and 7cm each. During the standing, postural sway distance and area, and EMG activity of tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius muscles were significantly augmented with increasing heel height (p<0.05). For comparison between eyes open and closed in terms of postural sway area and EMG activity of tibialis anterior muscle, barefoot and 7cm height conditions respectively showed significant differences as well. The findings indicate that high-heeled shoes may have disadvantages in maintaining balance function because of extra-muscular effort of ankle joint. This study provides useful information that will inform future studies on how heel height affects muscle activity around the ankle joint in aspects of static and dynamic balance.

• Physical Therapy Korea
• /
• v.21 no.2
• /
• pp.28-36
• /
• 2014

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the changes in the electromyographic (EMG) activity of the trunk and the lower limb muscles during quiet standing on an unstable surface while wearing low-heeled shoes (3 cm), high-heeled shoes (7 cm) and without footwear (0 cm) in 20 young healthy women. The subjects stood on an unstable surface for 30 seconds. We examined the differences in the EMG data of the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, biceps femoris, rectus femoris, tibialis anterior, and the gastrocnemius medialis muscle. A one-way repeated analysis of variance was used to compare the effects of shoe heel height on the EMG activity with the level of significance set at ${\alpha}=.05$. The EMG activity of the erector spinae and the rectus femoris were significantly increased (p<.05) in the subjects who wore elevated heel height, while the tibialis anterior and the gastrocnemius medialis were significantly decreased (p<.05). However, the rectus abdominis and the biceps femoris exhibited no significant difference among the three conditions. The above results indicate that wearing high-heeled shoes may change the postural strategy. The findings of this study suggest that excessive heel height could contribute to an increased fall risk during quiet standing.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
• /
• v.31 no.2
• /
• pp.106-113
• /
• 2010

The aim of this study was to evaluate effects of the balance ability on the heel height (flat, low heel[3cm], and high heel[7cm]) and high heeled habituation (group A is used to a low heeled shoes (<7cm) and group B is used to a high heeled shoes (${\geq}7cm$). Thirty-five subjects participated in this study. In this study, the static balance with opened eyes and closed eyes and dynamic balance were measured. Also functional reach test was tested. The results found that the static balance ability was the best in a 7cm heeled shoes with open eyes and closed eyes, but there was not significant difference between group A and Group B. Dynamic balance ability with walking velocity and cadence were significant difference between Group A and B. In the walking velocity, a flat was the fastest, followed by 7cm heel and 3cm heel with Group A while 3cm and 7cm, then a flat with Group B. Also Cadence pattern was similar. Functional balance ability was the highest with a flat, but it was not difference significantly between Group A and B. Therefore, this study demonstrated that the habituation to the high heel altered gait velocity and cadence of dynamic balance ability.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
• /
• v.24 no.4
• /
• pp.445-453
• /
• 2014

The purpose of this study was to analyze the gait characteristics and interaction between lower extremity joints according to shoe's heel heights in young women. Participants were selected as subject consisted of young and healthy women (age: $23.71{\pm}1.49yrs$, height: $165.92{\pm}2.00cm$, body weight: $54.37{\pm}3.46kg$) and walked with 3 types of shoe's high-heel (0, 5, 9 cm). The variables analyzed consisted of the displacement of Y axis in center of mass ([COM]; (position, velocity), front rear(FR) and left right(LR) angle of trunk, lower extremity joint angle (hip, knee, ankle) and asymmetric index (AI%). The displacement of Y axis in COM position showed the greater movement according to increase of shoe's heel heights, but velocity of COM showed the decrease according to increase of shoe's heel heights during gait. The hip and knee angle didn't show significant difference statistically according to increase of shoe's heel height, but left hip and knee showed more extended posture than those of right hip and knee angle. Also ankle angle didn't show significant difference statistically, but 9 cm heel showed more plantarflexion than those of 5 cm and 0 cm. The asymmetric index (AI%) showed more asymmetric 9 cm heel than those of 0 cm and 5 cm. The FR and LR angle in trunk tilting didn't show significant difference statistically according to the increase of shoe's heel height during gait in young women.