Author(s)

André Costa Tenório de Britto^1*, Ian Caetano Quadrado¹, Jake Carvalho Carmo¹, Vandilson Pinheiro Rodrigues², Mario Noberto Junior², Flavio Aragão Tenorio de Britto², Jefferson Fernando Coelho Junior³, Tiago Cavalcante⁴

¹Laboratório de Biomecânica e Leitura de Sinais, Faculdade de Educação Física, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Brasil.
²Departamento de Educação Física, Universidade Federal do Maranhão, São Luís, Brasil.
³Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Estadual do Maranhão, São Luís, Brasil.
⁴Curso de Medicina, Universidade Ceuma, São Luis, Brasil.

The aim of this study was to analyze the acute effects of a half-marathon run on plantar pressure, the medial longitudinal arch, and postural control in recreational female runners. Twelve adult women participated in the study and were assessed before and after a 21-km run. The analyses included the navicular drop test, static and dynamic baropodometry, and stabilometry in a bipedal stance. Data were subjected to descriptive statistics, paired Student’s t-test, effect size (Cohen’s d), and the Kappa index to assess agreement in foot type and foot strike classifications. The results revealed a significant reduction in right navicular height during bipedal support (P = 0.014; d = −1.05), as well as an increase in maximum static plantar pressure during bipedal stance (P = 0.024; d = 0.93) and in dynamic mean pressure on the left foot (P = 0.035; d = −0.85; negative value reflects the calculation order, but the direction of change was an increase). There was low agreement in foot type classification (Kappa = 0.077; 50%) and in foot strike classification for the left (Kappa = 0.143; 41.7%) and right foot (Kappa = 0.111; 33%). Stabilometric variables showed no statistically significant changes, suggesting that static postural control was maintained after prolonged exertion. It is concluded that the 21-km run induced acute changes in plantar structure and function, impacting the medial longitudinal arch and plantar pressure distribution, without impairing static postural control.

Running, Biomechanics, Plantar Arch, Plantar Pressure, Foot Strike, Postural Control

Britto, A. , Quadrado, I. , Carmo, J. , Rodrigues, V. , Junior, M. , Britto, F. , Junior, J. and Cavalcante, T. (2025) Biomechanical Adaptations of Plantar Pressure and Postural Control after a Half-Marathon Run. Open Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, 13, 159-174. doi: 10.4236/ojtr.2025.134014.