Medial Arch-Support Wrestling Shoes and Foot Posture Preservation in Adolescent Wrestlers

Medial Arch-Support Wrestling Shoes and Foot Posture Preservation in Adolescent Wrestlers: A Three-Year Randomized Controlled Trial

This three-year randomized controlled trial investigated whether wrestling shoes with built-in medial arch support can preserve foot arch structure in adolescent male wrestlers compared to standard wrestling shoes without arch support.

A total of 88 adolescent male wrestlers (age 11 at baseline) were randomly assigned to wear either modified wrestling shoes with integrated medial arch support (intervention group, n=44) or standard commercially available wrestling shoes (control group, n=44). Foot posture was assessed annually using the Staheli Arch Index via podoscopy. Plantar pressure distribution was recorded using the Tekscan F-Scan system. The study followed participants for three years.

The primary aim was to determine whether medial arch-support wrestling shoes reduce the emergence of flat foot (pes planus) compared with standard wrestling shoes during a critical period of foot development in young athletes.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Registered wrestlers at Regional Boarding Schools (YBO)
• Training frequency of 3 or more days per week
• No lower extremity injury within the preceding 6 months
• No current orthopedic insole use
• Normal foot posture at baseline

Exclusion Criteria:

• Prior lower extremity surgery
• Neurological disorders
• Rheumatological disorders
• Severe congenital foot deformity
• Current orthopedic insole use
• Existing foot deformity at baseline