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Characteristics of the foot health of 'low risk' older people: a principal components analysis of foot health measures

Campbell, J. (2006) Characteristics of the foot health of 'low risk' older people: a principal components analysis of foot health measures. The Foot. 16(1), pp. 44-50. 0958-2592.

Item Type: Article
Abstract: Background. It is widely accepted that there is paucity of good research backing the profession of podiatry, and that which is published is often not able to be compared with other studies because of methodological differences. Podiatric practice does not have a common assessment tool, nor a nationally agreed minimum data set. Practitioners therefore use a multiplicity of assessment measures, many of which are inter-related. This can produce problems when using clinical assessment methods for research studies as some statistical tests require independent variables. Objective. This study seeks to identify a set of independent measures which best describe the foot health of older people with low risk podiatric complaints. It is hoped that this will then lead to improved methods of foot health monitoring, both to aid in the detection of deterioration of the foot health of an individual and in more reliable analysis of podiatric data relating to low risk older populations. Methods. Data collected as part of a larger study investigating the effect of discharge from NHS podiatry service on older people with low risk podiatric problems was used to perform a principal components analysis. Results. An initial set of 22 variables was reduced to 5 independent, composite measures of foot health. Examination of the nature of these new factors revealed that they typified dimensions of independence, self-care, painfully callused feet, lower limb neurological problems and circulatory problems. Conclusions. The extracted factors give insight into the important underlying factors which govern foot health in older people without serious foot pathology. These factors can be used to design future assessment tools, particularly for the monitoring of foot health in older people.
Uncontrolled Keywords: Foot health, characteristics, older people, low risk, principal components analysis
Subjects: R Medicine > RD Surgery > RD563 Podiatry
H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology > HV1450 Aged
R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC952 Geriatrics
Creators: Campbell, Jackie
Publisher: Elsevier
Northamptonshire and East Midlands: Health
Faculties, Divisions and Institutes: University Faculties, Divisions and Research Centres - OLD > Faculty of Health & Society > Podiatry
Faculties > Faculty of Health & Society > Podiatry
Date: 2006
Date Type: Publication
Page Range: pp. 44-50
Journal or Publication Title: The Foot
Volume: 16
Number: 1
Language: English
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foot.2005.11.004
ISSN: 0958-2592
Status: Published / Disseminated
URI: http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/5883

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