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Background: Foot pain is a common problem affecting up to 1 in 5 adults and is known to adversely affect activities of daily living and health related quality of life. Orthopaedic footwear interventions are used as a conservative treatment for foot pain, although adherence is known to be low, in part due to the perception of poor comfort and unattractiveness of the footwear. The objective of this trial was to assess the efficacy of flip-flop style footwear (Foot Bio-Tec©) with a moulded foot-bed in reducing foot pain compared to participant's usual footwear. Methods: Two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial using computer generated random allocation schedule at an Australian university podiatry clinic. 108 volunteers with disabling foot pain were enrolled after responding to an advertisement and eligibility screening. Participants were randomly allocated to receive footwear education and moulded flip-flop footwear to wear as much as they were comfortable with for the next 12 weeks (n = 54) or footwear education and instructions to wear their normal footwear for the next 12 weeks (n = 54). Primary outcome was the pain domain of the Foot Health Status Questionnaire (FHSQ). Secondary outcomes were the foot function and general foot health domains of the FHSQ, a visual analogue scale (VAS) for foot pain and perceived comfort of the intervention footwear. Results: Compared to the control group, the moulded flip-flop group showed a significant improvement in the primary outcome measure of the FHSQ pain domain (adjusted mean difference 8.36 points, 95 % CI 5.58 to 13.27, p < 0.01). Statistical and clinically significant differences were observed for the secondary measure of foot pain assessed by a VAS and the FSHQ domains of foot function and general foot health. None of the participants reported any pain or discomfort from the intervention footwear and six (footwear group = 4) were lost to follow up. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that flip-flop footwear with a moulded foot-bed can have a significant effect on foot pain, function and foot health and might be a valuable adjunct therapy for people with foot pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The resting systolic toe pressure (TP) is a measure of small arterial function in the periphery. TP is used in addition to the ankle-brachial index when screening for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) of the lower limb in those with diabetes, particularly in the presence of lower limb medial arterial calcification. It may be used as an adjunct assessment of lower limb vascular function and as a predictor of wound healing. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of TP for detecting PAD in people with and without diabetes., Methods: This was a retrospective case-control study. Two researchers extracted information from consecutive patient records, including TP measurements, colour Duplex ultrasound results, demographic information, and medical history. Measures of diagnostic accuracy were determined by receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis, and calculation of sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood ratios., Results: Three hundred and nintey-four participants with suspected PAD were included. In the diabetes group ( n  = 176), ROC analysis of TP for detecting PAD was 0.78 (95%CI: 0.69 to 0.84). In the control group ( n  = 218), the ROC of TP was 0.73 (95%CI: 0.70 to 0.80). TP had highest sensitivity when anatomical distribution of disease was both proximal and distal (diabetes group: 79.49%, the control group: 82.61%). TP yielded highest sensitivity in mild disease (50-75% stenosis) in diabetes group, (81.82%) and moderate disease (>75% stenosis) in control group (80.77%)., Conclusions: Our findings indicate that TPs are useful to assist in diagnosing PAD in clinical practice, however, results should be interpreted with caution due to the small probability of PAD being present with a negative test., Competing Interests: This research was completed under the ethical approval of the University of Newcastle ethics committee approval number H2010–1230.Not applicable.The authors declare that they have no competing interests.Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Background: Podiatrists routinely perform non-invasive lower limb vascular assessment, however frequently cite time as a major barrier in performing regular assessment. The aim of this study was to develop an evidence-based vascular assessment method to guide podiatrists' decision-making processes to aid in timely vascular assessment in at risk populations., Method: The sample underwent brachial pressure measurement, ankle pressures, toe pressure and Doppler waveform with colour duplex ultrasound (CFDU) used as the reference standard. Both the targeted screening method and the American Heart Association (AHA) guideline for vascular screening were then applied to the data set and sensitivity and specificity of each method was calculated., Results: One hundred nineteen participants were included. Sensitivity of the targeted screening method (62%, 95% CI 47.17-75.35) was higher than the AHA method (49%, 95% CI 34.75-63.40), however, specificity of the AHA method (94%, 95% CI 85.62-98.37) was higher than the targeted screening method (85%, 95% CI 74.26-92.60). Diagnostic accuracy was similar with the AHA method yielding 74% diagnostic accuracy and the targeted screening method 73%., Conclusion: The targeted screening method and the broad international guideline demonstrated similar accuracy, however clinicians may save time using the targeted screening method. This study highlights the difficulties in obtaining accuracy in lower limb vascular assessment in general.

Background: Podiatrists play a central role in conducting non-invasive vascular assessment in the lower extremity. This involves screening for signs and symptoms of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and ongoing monitoring of the condition. Podiatric vascular assessment practices in Australia and New Zealand are currently unclear. Determining the clinical habits of Podiatrists is essential in identifying if there is a need for further education or support in performing accurate vascular assessments., Methods: A web-based, secure, anonymous questionnaire was conducted of registered Podiatrists in Australia and New Zealand between 1 April and 31 July 2013. The questions examined clinician's regular practices in vascular assessment, clinical indicators to perform and barriers in completing vascular assessment. Nominal logistic regression was performed to further examine years of experience and practice setting on clinical indicators to perform vascular assessment and types of assessment performed., Results: Four hundred forty-seven podiatrists participated in the survey. Clinical indicators for vascular assessment, along with barriers and available equipment were examined and the results varied depending on the podiatrists' geographical location, practice setting, and experience. Palpation of pedal pulses was the most frequently reported assessment (97 %) along with Doppler assessment (74 %). Pressure measurement was the least frequently reported vascular assessment method, with only 34 % undertaking ankle-brachial indices and 19 % completing toe-brachial indices. Public podiatrists reported more varied and complete vascular assessment compared to those in private practice. Lack of time was identified as the most frequently reported barrier (66 %) in performing vascular assessment, followed by lack of equipment (28 %). In New Zealand podiatrists, lack of equipment was much more of an issue than in Australian podiatrists., Conclusion: Large variations exist in vascular assessment methods amongst Australian and New Zealand podiatrists. Some assessments being undertaken are potentially inadequate for accurate screening for PAD. There is a need for continuing education in vascular assessment to address the deficiencies in technique reported by some Podiatrists. A podiatry-relevant summary of broad international guidelines for PAD screening may be of use to improve utilisation and accuracy of screening methods to improve patient management.

Background: Hand held Doppler examination is a frequently used non-invasive vascular assessment utilised by podiatrists. Despite this, the reliability of hand-held Doppler has not been thoroughly investigated. Given the importance of Doppler in completing a vascular assessment of the lower limb, it is essential to determine the reliability of the interpretation of this testing method in practicing podiatrists., Methods: This was a multi-centre inter and intra-rater reliability study. Four podiatrists (the raters) participated in this study, two public and two private practitioners. Three aspects of Doppler use were examined; (i) use of Doppler (i.e., technique and interpretation), (ii) interpretation of Doppler audio sounds, and (iii) interpretation of visual Doppler waveforms (i.e., tracings). Participants meeting current guidelines for vascular screening attended two testing sessions, 1 week apart at either the private practice (n = 32), or the public practice (n = 31). To assess use of Doppler, the raters evaluated the Doppler waveforms that they collected, rating them as mono-phasic or multi-phasic. To assess Doppler audio sounds and visual Doppler waveforms, raters were required to evaluate 30 audio recordings of Doppler sounds and 30 waveform tracings, respectively, that were previously recorded and chosen at random by the researchers. Cohen's kappa (κ) statistics were used to calculate inter and intra-rater reliability using SPSS version 19., Results: Use of Doppler demonstrated the lowest reliability for both pairs of clinicians (inter-rater reliability κ 0.20 to 0.24 and intra-rater reliability κ 0.27 to 0.42). The public podiatrists showed higher reliability in audio interpretation (inter-tester reliability κ 0.61, intra-tester reliability κ 1.00) compared to the private podiatrists (inter-tester reliability κ 0.31, intra-tester reliability κ 0.53). Evaluation of Doppler waveform tracings demonstrated highest reliability, with inter-rater reliability ranging from κ 0.77 to 0.90 and intra-rater reliability from κ 0.81 to 1.00., Conclusions: There is a need for ongoing education for podiatrists using Doppler in clinical practice, as the reliability for the clinical use of the Doppler was low. This indicates that technique could be an issue. There is also a need to further evaluate if hand-held Doppler equipment, using the examinations that we evaluated, is suitable for use in the contexts examined in this study.