The influence of age and overweight or obesity on foot sensitivity and postural control: A systematic review

Objective To perform a systematic review on the influence of age and overweight-or obesity-on foot sensitivity, as well as its relationship with balance and postural control. Methods Publications in the following databases were searched up to December 2018: Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scopus, SPORTDiscus and Web of Science. Both randomised controlled and non-randomised trials, plus cross-sectional studies that evaluated foot sensitivity and balance in adults and/or older people, were investigated. Results A total of 152 studies were found, 14 studies were included and 506 people of both sexes were involved in the included studies. Conclusions Increased age represented a detrimental effect on foot sensitivity. Most studies showed that decreased foot sensitivity was related to worse balance and/or postural stability. Overweight or obesity was associated with plantar sensitivity, with lower sensitivity and decreased postural stability observed in obese people.