Medial Column Instability and Spring Ligament Failure
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Medial Column Instability: A precursor to or consequence of spring ligament failure?
IRAS ID
203276
Contact name
Chandra Pasapula
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The normal function of the foot is a complex relationship between a number of structures. Failure of one of these structures is a common cause of flat feet in adulthood. The medial (big toe) side of the foot is one of these structures and it can become unstable due to bunions or failure of a tendon known as tibialis posterior. Another key stabiliser in this relationship is the spring ligament. What we don't know is whether spring ligament failure occurs as a result of or is the cause of instability of the medial column. We aim to determine the role of the spring ligament by examining patients in clinic who present with flat foot or bunions. We will perform a newly described simple clinical test for the spring ligament which will be part of the normal routine clinical examination. This test will determine the stability of the spring ligament in both sets of patients allowing us to test our theory. Participants in our study would only be required to participate, after giving fully informed consent, for the duration of their clinic appointment.
REC name
East Midlands - Nottingham 2 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/EM/0451
Date of REC Opinion
25 Oct 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion