Helen Banwell

Program Lead, Podiatry, University of South Australia | BAppSc(Pod), MHlthSc(Pod), PhD

Foot orthoses are one of the more common interventions used by podiatrists to address concerns in children’s feet or lower limbs. As our knowledge on foot posture and function has evolved, it has become harder to know when or how to prescribe foot orthoses within an evidence-based framework. Furthermore, there is also little consistency in how research aims to measure the impact of foot orthoses in children.

In this presentation, Helen presents a simplified, evidence backed summary of what we know foot orthoses can and cannot do, along with a pragmatic overview of ‘what works and when’ in terms of using different types of foot orthoses. This is followed up with a practical, hands-on review of simple gross motor and function measures that can be incorporated into paediatric assessment to identify when foot orthoses are having an impact.