NCT06548750

Foot Muscle Strengthening Exercises for Pes Planovalgus

Completed NA Last updated 13 August 2025

What this trial tests

NA trial testing Intrinsic and Ectrinsic Exercise in Pes Planus in 32 participants. Completed in 5 February 2025.

Timeline

2 September 2024

Primary endpoint
15 January 2025

5 February 2025

Quick facts

Lead sponsor	Istanbul University - Cerrahpasa
Phase	NA
Status	Completed
Study type	INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation	randomized
Design	parallel
Masking	single
Primary purpose	treatment
Enrollment	32
Start date	2 September 2024
Primary completion	15 January 2025
Estimated completion	5 February 2025
Sites	1 location across Turkey (Türkiye)

Drugs / interventions tested

• Intrinsic and Ectrinsic Exercise
• Intrinsic Exercise

Conditions studied

• Pes Planus — all drugs for Pes Planus →

Sponsor

Istanbul University - Cerrahpasa

Who can join

Adults 4 to 7, any sex, with Pes Planus. Patients with the condition only — healthy volunteers not accepted.

Sponsor's own description

Pes planovalgus is a common foot condition affecting the child population. It is characterized by the partial or complete collapse of the medial longitudinal arch with rearfoot eversion and forefoot abduction, which is associated with changes in lower extremity kinematics during dynamic activity.

The lower extremity chain includes the foot, ankle, knee, and hip joints, with the feet acting as the base of support. However, due to their small size, maintaining balance can be challenging. Any small dynamic change in the foot, as the support base, can impact overall body posture. The foot arch, which can be pronated or supinated, affects proprioceptive input by altering joint movement, contact area, and muscle strategy for stability. Pes planovalgus, characterized by excessive subtalar pronation, lead to instability and hypermobility, requiring more neuromuscular control to maintain balance. As a result, flat feet can cause pathomechanical issues and compensatory actions in the lower extremity chain, affecting overall body balance.

The effectiveness of exercise interventions, particularly foot intrinsic muscle strengthening exercises, in increasing the medial longitudinal arch in individuals with pes planus has been investigated in numerous studies. It is widely accepted that both intrinsic and extrinsic muscle groups play a crucial role in the formation, maintenance, and enhancement of foot arches. However, there is a lack of studies specifically examining the effectiveness of exercises aimed at strengthening these muscles in children with pes planovalgus. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to compare the effects of two corrective exercise programs focused on the improvement of the medial longitudinal arch in children with pes planovalgus: one incorporating routine intrinsic muscle exercises and the other combining them with extrinsic muscle exercises.

Publications & conference data

1 peer-reviewed publication reference this trial (live from Europe PMC):

1. Intrinsic vs. combined foot muscle strengthening for pes planovalgus in children aged 4-7 years: a randomized controlled trial.
   Tuncer D, Erekdag A, Senaran H, Uzer G. · · 2025 · PMID 40999032 · DOI 10.1007/s00431-025-06480-3