Measurement of Plantar Tactile Sensitivity to Lateral Skin Stretch on Standing or Sitting Posture

Abstract

We have been developing a new tactile sensory measurement device capable of early detection of somatosensory impairment. This device involves a small precision automatic stage, where lateral skin stretch is presented in a direction horizontal, to measure the tactile sensitivity of the plantar skin. In our previous study, the utility of the measuring method was established in healthy participants. However, it was unclear whether the posture and laterality during the measurement affect the results. This study evaluated the tactile sensitivity of younger healthy participants by using the tactile device on multiple regions of the participants’ plantar skin, and measured of foot pressure in the standing and sitting posture. By using twoway analysis of variance, we analyzed the effect of the posture and laterality on the tactile sensitivity. We revealed that tactile sensitivity of the fifth toe tend to be lower in both standing and sitting postures. The foot pressure of the fifth toe was extremely small, compared to that of other regions of the measurement points. In conclusion, this study showed that the measurement data of tactile sensitivity is not affected by posture and plantar region during measurement.