Injury-Reduction Effectiveness of Prescribing Running Shoes Based on Plantar Shape in Marine Corps Basic Training, San Diego, CA, and Parris Island, SC

摘要

In response to a request from the Military Training Task Force of the Defense Safety Oversight Council, this study examined whether prescribing running shoes based on the shape of the plantar surface influenced injury risk in Marine Corps basic training. After foot examinations, Marine Corps recruits in an experimental group (E, n=408 men, 314 women) were prescribed motion- control, stability, or cushioned shoes for plantar shapes indicative of low, medium, or high arches, respectively. A control group (C, n=432 men, 256 women) received a stability shoe regardless of plantar shape. Injuries during training were determined from outpatient visits provided by the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center. Other known injury risk factors (e.g., fitness, smoking, prior physical activity) were obtained from a questionnaire, existing databases, or the training units. Multivariate Cox regression controlling for other risk factors showed little difference between the E and C groups among men (hazard ratio(E/C)=1.04, 95% confidence interval=0.83-1.29) or women (hazard ratio(E/C)=0.82, 95% confidence interval = 0.65-1.14). This prospective study demonstrated that assigning shoes based on the shape of the plantar foot surface had little influence on injuries after control of other injury risk factors.