Did you know that your feet support almost 2 times your bodyweight while walking and up to 9 times your bodyweight while running? That is a lot of pressure on a relatively small part of your body. Any structural or functional abnormality may render your feet incapable of withstanding the enormous forces placed on them, leading to breakdown of the intricate bone structure. As your feet play a role in almost any type of exercise or routine physical activity that you engage in, keeping them healthy is very important.
The 3D foot scan helps to accurately measure load patterns on your feet with both walking and running, allowing your doctor to identify inefficiency in foot function. This information can be used to develop personalized orthotics to resolve your condition. The following steps are usually involved:
- History: Your doctor will discuss any foot pain or problems you have noticed with your gait as well as any aggravating or relieving factors.
- Computerized Scanning: You will have to walk across a pressure plate fitted with special sensors that accurately record the amount of pressure distributed across different areas of your feet.
- Formation of 3D images: A 3-dimensional visual representation is formed of the pressure distribution across the different areas of your feet.
- Diagnosis and Treatment Planning: Based on the results of your 3D foot scan, your doctor can determine the type of orthotic appliance and physical therapy that will help to improve your gait.
- Creating Highly Accurate Customized Orthotics: 3D printing technology can be used to create perfectly fitting orthotics that are superior to the ones developed by plaster molding techniques.
An injury to your foot can limit your mobility and severely impact your quality of life. If you experience pain with walking or running in your foot, ankle, shin, or knee; a 3D foot scan may help to accurately diagnose your problem and put you back on the road to a more active lifestyle.
