Table 2.
Participant Perceptions and Behavioral Characteristics
|
Variable |
Cheetah Heel Cupa |
The X Bracea |
P Value |
| Perceptions, mean ± SDb | |||
| Brace improved athletic performancec | 3.9 ± 0.9 | 3.7 ± 1.0 | .50 |
| Brace appearance was acceptablec | 4.4 ± 0.7 | 4.4 ± 0.7 | .93 |
| Brace was comfortablec | 4.3 ± 0.7 | 3.8 ± 1.3 | .25 |
| Behavioral characteristics | |||
| Stretching frequency, d/wkd | 3.1 ± 1.5 | 3.1 ± 1.6 | .99 |
| Time in barefoot sports participation before enrollment, h/wk | 10.9 ± 7.3 | 13.3 ± 8.2 | .40 |
| Time in barefoot sports during study, h/wk | 10.0 ± 8.4 | 12.6 ± 7.7 | .36 |
| Time in barefoot sports wearing brace during study, h/wk | 7.4 ± 6.5 | 8.1 ± 6.6 | .76 |
| Time in barefoot sports wearing brace during study, %c | 81.8 ± 26.7 | 64.1 ± 29.5 | .08 |
| Total time missed because of heel pain during study, h | 6.9 ± 21.5 | 6.2 ± 13.2 | .91 |
| Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use in the month before enrollment, No. (%) | 7 (44) | 9 (56) | .48 |
| Missed sports because of heel pain during study, No. (%) | 8 (50) | 9 (56) | .72 |
a
Model Tuli's (Medi-Dyne Healthcare Products).
b
Rated on a 1–5 scale, with a higher score indicating stronger agreement.
c
Expressed as the mean ± SD percentage of the time athletes reported wearing their brace, calculated as the amount of time wearing the brace divided by the total time reported playing sports.
d
A higher score indicates more frequent stretching.