Prevalence of Flat Foot in Primary School Students Aged 7-12 Years, in Zanjan City, Iran

Physical conditions of people are among the essential components of their health. Any structural or physical changes of the human body can affect the performance of the individual. Flat foot is one of the most common problems in musculoskeletal disorders that can be addressed in childhood, and its complications can be reduced by providing appropriate and timely treatments. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of flat foot in primary school students (aged 7-12 years) in Zanjan City, Iran to improve the effectiveness of interventions.

This research was a cross-sectional study to assess the prevalence of flat foot types among 1700 girls and boys students aged 7-12 years in the elementary schools of Zanjan City.

A total of 900 male (53%) and 800 female (47%) students participated in this study. The samples’ Mean±SD age, height, and weight were 9.63±1.55 years, 132.93±13.42 cm, and 32.75±10.46 kg. The prevalence of different types of flat feet were as follows: 491 (28.9%) children with smooth flat foot, 12 (0.7%) children with rigid flat foot, and 1197 (70.4%) children without any type of flat feet. The ordinal regression model showed that the highest level of the flat foot was observed among the third-grade students with 33%, and the lowest level of the flat foot was among the second-grade students with 26.3%. Weight was the strongest predictor for the flat foot in the students. By 1 kg weight increase, the probability of flat foot increases by 1.065 times.

The prevalence of foot flat among primary school students in Zanjan City had a high rate. There is a significant relationship between the flat foot and weight , therefore nutritional interventions are necessary for these children.