A team of researchers conducted a systematic review to evaluate the impact of foot orthoses on rheumatoid arthritis and aimed to offer new evidence-based insights for clinical treatment.
They searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and Web of Science databases from inception to July 2025 to identify clinical randomized controlled trials investigating the use of foot orthoses for the treatment of foot-related issues in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Eight randomized controlled trials (n = 486) were included; six underwent meta-analysis. Meta-analysis showed that foot orthoses were effective in relieving foot pain and foot disability, but were ineffective for activity limitations and mental health. Additionally, subgroup analysis showed that short-term foot orthoses interventions were effective in relieving foot pain, but long-term interventions appeared to be ineffective.
The authors suggested that future work should standardize the production of customized foot orthoses and conduct long-term randomized controlled trials to validate currently unproven results.
The study, “Effect of foot orthoses on foot problems in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials,” was published in Disability and Rehabilitation.
