Analysis of Plantar Pressure Pattern after Metatarsal Head Resection. Can Plantar Pressure Predict Diabetic Foot Reulceration?

• Main Authors: Marta García-Madrid, Yolanda García-Álvarez, Francisco Javier Álvaro-Afonso, Esther García-Morales, Aroa Tardáguila-García, José Luis Lázaro-Martínez
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-05-01
• Series: Journal of Clinical Medicine
• Subjects: diabetic foot; conservative surgery; metatarsal head resection; pressure transfer; reulceration
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/10/11/2260

To evaluate the metatarsal head that was associated with the highest plantar pressure after metatarsal head resection (MHR) and the relations with reulceration at one year, a prospective was conducted with a total of sixty-five patients with diabetes who suffered from the first MHR and with an inactive ulcer at the moment of inclusion. Peak plantar pressure and pressure time integral were recorded at five specific locations in the forefoot: first, second, third, fourth, and fifth metatarsal heads. The highest value of the four remaining metatarsals was selected. After resection of the first metatarsal head, there is a displacement of the pressure beneath the second metatarsal head (<i>p</i> < 0.001). Following the resection of the minor metatarsal bones, there was a medial displacement of the plantar pressure. In this way, plantar pressure was displaced under the first metatarsal head following resection of the second or third head (<i>p</i> = 0.001) and under the central heads after resection of the fourth or fifth metatarsal head (<i>p</i> < 0.009 and <i>p</i> < 0.001 respectively). During the one-year follow-up, patients who underwent a metatarsal head resection in the first and second metatarsal heads suffered transfer lesion in the location with the highest pressure. Patients who underwent a minor metatarsal head resection (second–fifth metatarsal heads) showed a medial transference of pressure. Additionally, following the resection of the first metatarsal head there was a transference of pressure beneath the second metatarsal head. Increase of pressure was found to be a predictor of reulceration in cases of resection of the first and second metatarsal heads.