Study Reveals The Mechanics of ‘Steering Wheel’ Joint For The First Time

The subtalar joint is made up of two bones (the calcaneus and the talus) below the ankle and the is key to some complex biomechanics – keeping the ankle flexible for twisting and bending, yet also rigid for propelling the body forward. subtalar joint, sometimes thought of as the 'steering wheel' of the body

It’s the first time the joint has been imaged while rotating in a standing position (bearing the whole weight of the body), through a 3D technique using computed tomography (CT scans) and digital volume correlation, where several images are combined to produce an accurate model of movement.

"This new research helps us to better understand the complex biomechanics of the foot and could pave the way for new treatments that just aren't currently available." says bioengineer Gianluca Tozzi.

Doctors can't currently replace your subtalar joint in the same way they can your hip and the researchers hope it might lead to more tailored treatments for ankle problems, like the personalised ones currently prescribed for issues with hips and knees.

The study used wedges to invert and evert the talus.

Gary Ward with his wedges

Using wedges during a session

We may have imaged the subtalar joint, but now what?

What The Foot was published in 2014 by Anatomy in Motion founder Gary Ward and in it he explains why the Talus 'drives the bus'.

Modern medicine has made huge strides in giving us an understanding of things previously beyond our capability as well as huge success in the treatment of trauma and emergencies. New research from one field of study may eventually filter through and influence others, but medicine has taken an increasingly compartmentalised approach, focussing on the symptoms of disease instead of the causes, narrowing everything down and forgetting to also keep looking at the bigger picture and striving to treat a person as a whole.

Gary Ward has been teaching how the talus ‘drives the bus’ for nearly a decade based on his own observations of the surface of the joints and their position relative to joints up and down the chain. Whilst it is true that technological advancements have continued to bring new possibilities to allopathic medicine, some of these advances are questionable, either in terms of their necessity, their results or their practical application. We have a great capacity for logic and we are able to use logical inference to translate empirical observation and data into guidelines for best practice in lieu of always deferring to technology.

Surgical interventions aren’t necessarily the best choice and there may be unintended consequences; it’s harder to undo something once it’s been done than to not do it at all or, as someone sagely said, you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube.

There may be many reasons why one person gets ill or suffers and another person doesn’t and the current model of treating symptoms takes away the real question of looking for the root cause of disease and the origins of dysfunction. If we understand deeply how we can maintain our health, then we can focus our efforts on prevention because no single intervention is likely to bring the best overall results.

- F

REFERENCE

Peña Fernández, M., Hoxha, D., Chan, O. et al. Centre of Rotation of the Human Subtalar Joint Using Weight-Bearing Clinical Computed Tomography. Sci Rep 10, 1035 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-57912-z

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