Stress distribution of the foot during mid-stance to push-off in barefoot gait: a 3-D finite element analysis

Objective. To quantify stress distribution of the foot during mid-stance to push-off in barefoot gait using 3-D finite element analysis. Design. To simulate the foot structure and facilitate later consideration o f footwear. Finite element model was generated and loading condition simula ting barefoot gait during mid-stance to push-off was used to quantify the s tress distributions. Background. A computational model can provide overall stress distributions of the foot subject to various loading conditions. Methods. A preliminary 3-D finite element foot model was generated based on the computed tomography data of a male subject and the bone and soft tissu e structures were modeled. Analysis was performed for loading condition sim ulating barefoot gait during mid-stance to push-off. Results. The peak plantar pressure ranged from 374 to 1003 kPa. and the pea k von Mises stress in the bone ranged from 2.12 to 6.91 MPa at different in stants. The plantar pressure patterns were similar to measurement result fr om previous literature. Conclusions. The present study provides a preliminary computational model t hat is capable of estimating the overall plantar pressure and bone stress d istributions. It can also provide quantitative analysis for normal and path ological foot motion.