Movement of the human foot in 100 pain free individuals aged 18–45 : implications for understanding normal foot function

Background: Understanding motion in the normal healthy foot is a prerequisite for understanding the effects of pathology and thereafter setting targets for interventions. Quality foot kinematic data from healthy feet will also assist the development of high quality and research based clinical models of foot biomechanics. To address gaps in the current literature we aimed to describe 3D foot kinematics using a 5 segment foot model in a population of 100 pain free individuals. Methods: Kinematics of the leg, calcaneus, midfoot, medial and lateral forefoot and hallux were measured in 100 self reported healthy and pain free individuals during walking. Descriptive statistics were used to characterise foot movements. Contributions from different foot segments to the total motion in each plane were also derived to explore functional roles of different parts of the foot. Results: Foot segments demonstrated greatest motion in the sagittal plane, but large ranges of movement in all planes. All foot segments demonstrated movement throughout gait, though least motion was observed between the midfoot and calcaneus. There was inconsistent evidence of movement coupling between joints. There were clear differences in motion data compared to foot segment models reported in the literature. Conclusions: The data reveal the foot is a multiarticular structure, movements are complex, show incomplete evidence of coupling, and vary person to person. The data provide a useful reference data set against which future experimental data can be compared and may provide the basis for conceptual models of foot function based on data rather than anecdotal observations

Investigating the cause(s) of the Eucalyptus gomphocephala (Tuart) decline epidemic in Western Australian native forest.

Tuart is a magnificent woodland tree endemic to the Swan Coastal Plain of Western Australia, and is one of the few eucalypts that is adapted to calcareous soil profiles (1). Prior to European settlement there were more than 111,600 ha of tuart woodlands (2) but this has been reduced to 30,311 mostly as a result of clearing for urban development and agriculture (3). In the early 1990’s the decline of tuart woodlands in Yalgorup National Park (YNP), 1.5 hours south of Perth, became severe causing public awareness and concern. At present, the majority of the 13,000 hectares of this park is affected. A large research group was established in 2003 to investigate the cause(s) of this decline, conducting research on a range of abiotic and biotic factors, including water relations and hydrology, environmental correlates, fire and competition, mycorrhizae and nutrition, fungal pathogens and insect pests. The collaborative, integrated and adaptive approach to the research, and the latest findings of the group will be presented