What we learned at the first SAPI Chair Conference: children's health in motion
The health of children's feet influences how children walk, run, play, balance, and interact with the world. However, it is a topic often shrouded in doubts, contradictory opinions, or unconvincing recommendations. That is why the first Conference of the Chair of Child Foot Health (SAPI), held at Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, was so relevant: it was not just another academic event, but a meeting designed to bring science closer to the real lives of families.
The conference, promoted by UCAM, SEBIOR, the University of Barcelona, and Pablosky, brought together professionals from all over Spain for a full day of training under a motto that said it all: "Walk better, live better. Child health in motion." For more than twelve hours, knowledge, clinical experiences, and updated perspectives on how the child's foot develops and how to properly support it were shared.
One of the most important milestones of the day was the participation of Dr. Angela Evans, considered one of the world's leading experts in pediatric podiatry. Her presence was a true event for the attendees: trainers, clinical podiatrists, students, and healthcare professionals who had the opportunity to learn and share cases, methodologies, and evaluation criteria. She not only contributed her international experience but also helped connect the latest research with the daily concerns in consultations.
In addition to her intervention, the conference addressed very specific issues that directly affect the daily lives of thousands of families. They talked about in-toeing gait, that way of walking "with the feet turned inward" that causes so much concern in parents. Patterns of hypermobility, increasingly frequent, and how to adapt footwear to support very flexible feet without limiting their natural movement were reviewed. The impact of children's sports on foot health, the importance of posturology in global bodily development, and certain alterations of the talus, a key bone in alignment and gait, were also analyzed.
Another block highly valued by the attendees was dedicated to the construction of children's and sports footwear: what elements favor a natural stride, why flexibility matters so much, what is the role of 0-drop and wide toe boxes in development, and what characteristics distinguish a healthy shoe from one that is not. There was even a practical workshop on silicone orthotics to correct children's digital deformities in a respectful and non-invasive way.
Professionals agreed that the meeting was a perfect blend of theory and practice. One of them summarized it as follows: "Learning, sharing, and networking. This is adding value to child health." Another attendee added: "Thank you for creating this chair to shed light on pediatric podiatry." The general feeling was that of being before a necessary movement: a space where the healthcare and educational community can update themselves, share criteria, and move towards a more preventive and evidence-based vision.
The SAPI Chair, directed by Dr. Gabriel Gijón Noguerón and coordinated by Dr. Manuel Pardo Ríos, has precisely that purpose: to unite science, education, and clinical practice so that knowledge does not remain in conferences or university classrooms, but reaches the school playground, the psychomotor skills class, and the moment when parents choose the next pair of shoes.
And that's where this project meets Pablosky. Designing children's footwear is an enormous responsibility: every material, every flex, every millimeter of the last influences how the feet that will use it develop. For us, supporting research is not about marketing; it's about making products that respect the natural way of moving, with real flexibility, 0-drop, and space for toes to work as they should. It's about being useful for parents who want to make informed and calm decisions.
This first SAPI Conference has confirmed that science and childhood must walk hand in hand. That prevention begins with the first steps. That dissemination is as important as research. And that respecting their feet is respecting their way of discovering the world.
