The effects of restricting the flexion-extension motion of the first metatarsophalangeal joint on human walking gait.

The first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint is a critical component for normal walking. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of restricting the flexion-extension motion of the first MTP joint on human walking gait. Ten male participants were recruited to perform walking trials under barefoot (BF) and the first MTP joint constraint (FMJC) conditions, respectively. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences in walking speed and stride length. The characteristics of angular displacement in three lower limb joints and ground reaction force (GRF) were almost identical in BF and FMJC. However, maxima, minima and range of motion of three joint angles were significantly different. The utilized coefficient of friction (UCOF) increased significantly after FMJC, indicating that there may be a greater risk of slippage and falling when FMJC.