Foot skin
Cutis pedis
Integumentary (skin)SkinLegLeft and right
View left in 3D View right in 3D
- What it is
- Skin of the foot: very thick glabrous skin on the sole over the heel and ball, a raised medial longitudinal arch, thin skin on the dorsum and five toes (the big toe has two phalanges, the others three).
- Function
- Bears body weight and friction in standing and walking and senses ground contact for balance.
- Size
- Foot ~26 cm long, ~9.5 cm wide at the ball; plantar epidermis up to ~1.5 mm, heel skin several mm in total
- Clinical note
- Loss of protective sensation in the sole (diabetic neuropathy) lets painless pressure ulcers develop — the commonest cause of non-traumatic amputation.