View source for Toe box

{{short description|Part of a shoe}}
[[File:Diversity Feet (4549085259).jpg|thumb|alt=A group of people stood with one foot outstretched, forming a circle. They wear a variety of shoes and sandals.|Shoes with a variety of toe boxes]]
The '''toe box''' is the section of [[footwear]] that surrounds the toes on closed-toe shoes.<ref name=design>{{cite journal |last1=Jellema |first1=AH |last2=Huysmans |first2=T |last3=Hartholt |first3=K |last4=van der Cammen |first4=TJM |title=Shoe design for older adults: Evidence from a systematic review on the elements of optimal footwear. |journal=Maturitas |date=September 2019 |volume=127 |pages=64–81 |doi=10.1016/j.maturitas.2019.06.002 |pmid=31351522|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334536232|doi-access=free |hdl=1765/117473 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Toe boxes that are too tight can cause injuries and [[foot deformity|foot deformities]], whereas wider toe boxes may be used to treat or prevent common foot conditions such as [[broken toe]]s,<ref name=wider>{{cite web |publisher=American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons |title=Toe and Forefoot Fractures |url=https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/diseases--conditions/toe-and-forefoot-fractures |website=www.orthoinfo.org |series=OrthoInfo}}</ref><ref name="NHS">{{cite web |title=Broken toe |url=https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/broken-toe/ |website=nhs.uk |publisher=UK National Health Service |language=en |date=17 October 2017}}</ref> [[bunions]],<ref name=AO2016>{{cite web|title=Bunions|url=http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00155|website=OrthoInfo - AAOS|access-date=8 November 2017|date=February 2016}}</ref><ref name=Highheel2016>{{cite journal |last1=Barnish |first1=MS |last2=Barnish |first2=J |title=High-heeled shoes and musculoskeletal injuries: a narrative systematic review. |journal=BMJ Open |date=13 January 2016 |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=e010053 |doi=10.1136/bmjopen-2015-010053 |pmid=26769789|pmc=4735171 }}</ref> and [[Morton's neuroma]].<ref name=shoemods>{{cite journal |last1=Colò |first1=Gabriele |last2=Rava |first2=Alessandro |last3=Samaila |first3=Elena Manuela |last4=Palazzolo |first4=Anna |last5=Talesa |first5=Giuseppe |last6=Schiraldi |first6=Marco |last7=Magnan |first7=Bruno |last8=Ferracini |first8=Riccardo |last9=Felli |first9=Lamberto |title=The effectiveness of shoe modifications and orthotics in the conservative treatment of Civinini-Morton syndrome: state of art |journal=Acta Bio Medica: Atenei Parmensis |date=2020 |volume=91 |issue=4–S |pages=60–68 |doi=10.23750/abm.v91i4-S.9713 |pmid=32555077 |pmc=7944831 |issn=0392-4203}}</ref> Toe boxes come in a variety of shapes and styles of construction, some of which are a matter of fashion, and some of which are designed for specialized functions.
==Fitting==
[[File:VerbildeteFusseNormaleFusse.gif|thumb|If the toes overhang when standing on the removed insole (right), then they will be cramped inside the toe box (left)]]
The toe box of a shoe should fit the wearer's foot without cramping or compressing it. A simple way to test if a toe box is too tight is to take out the insole of the shoe and stand on it. If the toes overhang the insole, the toe box is too small for the foot.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Allan |first1=Isom |title=Is Your Toe Box Wide Enough? The Simple Test for Running Success |url=https://www.cbphysicaltherapy.com/toe-box-wide-enough-simple-test-ensure-running-success/ |website=Coury & Buehler Physical Therapy |date=19 April 2016}}</ref>
The toe box also needs enough extra room to accommodate movements of the foot, such as lengthening arches and the splay of the toes.<ref name=fitting>{{cite web |title=Our Shoe Fitting Process |url=https://www.charmcityrun.com/fit/ |website=Charm City Run}}</ref> With each step, ankles and feet bend, toes spread and flex,<ref name=fitting/> and the [[arches of the foot]] flatten and rebound. Because the arches flatten,<ref name=usmilit/> the foot lengthens<ref name=ballet/><ref name=fitting/> and widens as it takes weight.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|82–83}} Weight-bearing causes the foot to widen across the [[Ball (foot)|ball]] by up to {{convert|0.5|inch|cm}}. A foot with a higher longitudinal arch will lengthen more in use, and more room in front of the toes may be needed.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|82–83}}
When running, weight is shifted onto the ball and toes of the foot, with the heel barely touching the ground. A narrow toe box therefore hinders running more than it does walking.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|33}}
High heels also shift weigh onto the toes. Even a heel less than {{convert|2|cm|in}} tall can increase pressure on the toes by over 20%.<ref name=cost>{{cite journal |last1=Coughlin |first1=MJ |last2=Thompson |first2=FM |title=The high price of high-fashion footwear. |journal=Instructional Course Lectures |date=1995 |volume=44 |issue=10 |pages=371–7 |doi=10.2106/00004623-199410000-00022 |pmid=7797875 |s2cid=29979737 |url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/108b/86467a149711f635e6583a352e928b2ab1b3.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118004331/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/108b/86467a149711f635e6583a352e928b2ab1b3.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-11-18 }}</ref>
==Issues caused by poorly-fitting toe boxes==
[[File:2jalanõud.jpg|thumb|Roomy toe boxes]]
Generally, toes should not touch the toe box itself, at the end or at the sides. Toe boxes that put pressure on the foot slowly produce permanent deformities;<ref name=cost/> toe boxes that strike the toes cause bruising; and toe boxes that rub hurt the skin.<ref name=marathon/>
Narrowed toe boxes may also be linked to [[metatarsalgia]] (pain in the midfoot), [[metatarsal stress fracture]], [[Haglund syndrome]], [[Freiberg infraction]], and [[Morton's neuroma]]. They can also aggravate [[bursitis]].<ref name=imaging>{{cite journal |last1=Goud |first1=A |last2=Khurana |first2=B |last3=Chiodo |first3=C |last4=Weissman |first4=BN |title=Women's musculoskeletal foot conditions exacerbated by shoe wear: an imaging perspective. |journal=American Journal of Orthopedics (Belle Mead, N.J.) |date=April 2011 |volume=40 |issue=4 |pages=183–91 |pmid=21731927 |url=https://cdn.mdedge.com/files/s3fs-public/Document/September-2017/040040183.pdf}} (free fulltext)</ref>
===Joint deformities===
Too-tight toe boxes can permanently deform the foot,<ref name=cost/> weakening it enough to significantly impair function.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|106,110–113}} Tight socks can have similar effects, especially if the foot is already fairly deformed.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|105138}}
Roomy toe boxes which permit free movement help, with improvement of deformities of the foot depending on the degree of severity and duration of the deformity, and the age of the patient.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|107,112}} If too-narrow and too-short toe boxes have previously been worn, the muscles of the arches will be weaker; the foot may expand more, and the muscles may feel tired and painful until they strengthen.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|83}} Foot exercise and broader shoes tend to thicken and widen the foot; a re-fitting after six months may be needed, although after that the shoe size of adults generally stabilizes.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|90}}
====Bunions====
Shoes which put pressure on the outside edge of the big toe cause [[bunion]] (bending of the big toe sideways towards the other toes). Bunion prevention requires a shoe with a sole which does not taper on that side, so that the big toe can point in its natural direction.<ref name=cost/><ref name=usmilit>{{cite book |last1=Munson |first1=Edward Lyman |title=The soldier's foot and the military shoe; a handbook for officers and noncommissioned officers of the line |date=1912 |location=Menasha, Wis.|publisher=Press of the George Banta publishing company |url=https://archive.org/details/soldiersfootmili00munsrich}} (this is the publication of a four-year review into the footwear of the US military by the Army Shoe Board, of which [[Edward Lyman Munson|the author]], a physician and senior officer of the [[United States Army Medical Corps]], is president.)</ref>{{rp|103–105}} Any material bunion deformity appreciably weakens the foot; the sideways shift in the big toe decreases leverage and shifts weight-bearing. However, this deformity is very common.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|105}}
A [[Tailor's bunion|bunionette]], a similar inwards bending of the little toe, is caused by a too-narrow toe box which puts pressure on the other side of the toes; it is not uncommon, but generally causes less impairment, as the little toe is less mechanically important.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|105}}
The 1993 [[American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society]] Women’s Shoe Survey found that women who wore shoes no more than 0.5&nbsp;cm narrower than their feet (12% of those surveyed) very rarely had foot pain and had less foot deformity than the average woman (who wore shoes 1.2&nbsp;cm narrower than her foot). Of women who wore shoes that ''were'' more than 0.5&nbsp;cm narrower than their feet, 80% had foot pain and 73 percent were [[orthopaedic]] patients.<ref name=cost/> Women over 50 who remember wearing narrow toe boxes in their 20s and 30s are more likely to have foot pain and [[bunion]]s.<ref name=design/>
Severe bunions can develop into [[crossover toe]]s, where the toes overlap.<ref name=imaging/> Crossover toes are initially flexible, and can be uncrossed with the fingers, but spring back. If left, eventually the soft tissue scars and tightens, and it becomes impossible to uncross the toes.<ref name=lesser>{{cite journal |last1=Malhotra |first1=K |last2=Davda |first2=K |last3=Singh |first3=D |title=The pathology and management of lesser toe deformities. |journal=EFORT Open Reviews |date=November 2016 |volume=1 |issue=11 |pages=409–419 |doi=10.1302/2058-5241.1.160017 |pmid=28461920 |pmc=5367573}}</ref>
====Hammertoes====
Tight toe boxes are the most common cause of [[Hammer toe|hammertoes]], [[mallet toe]]s and [[claw toes]]. A too-small toe box forces the toes to bend; eventually, the ligaments shorten, the joint capsule tightens, and the toes no longer relax to a straight position when taken out of the shoes. If the ligaments continue to tighten, it may become impossible to straighten the toes.<ref name=harvard>{{cite web |last1=Publishing |first1=Harvard Health |title=Hammertoe |url=https://www.health.harvard.edu/feet-and-foot-care/hammertoe |website=Harvard Health|date=12 December 2014 }}</ref><ref name=lesser/>
Wearing wide, roomy toe boxes which are longer than the longest toe, and are not tight or painful anywhere, prevents and treats hammertoes. High heels can force the toes forwards against the ends of the toe box, and should also be avoided (both to prevent hammertoes and to treat them).<ref name=harvard/> Shoes should fasten such that the toes do not slide into a collision with the end of the toe box, especially when walking downhill.<ref name=marathon/>
===Skin and nail problems===
[[File:Preventing black toenail subungual hematoma.svg|upright=1|left|thumb|{{ubl|Right column: the shoe is loose, and when walking, particularly downhill, the foot slides back and forth within the shoe.|Center: there is too little ease for arches to extend when walking, and the shoe is too tight.|Left: a properly-fitting shoe.}}]]
====Blisters and calluses====
Ill-fitting toe boxes can rub against the foot, causing [[blisters]],<ref name=marathon/> and eventually [[callus]]es and [[Corn (medicine)|corns]]. These often occur on the toes and the balls of the foot.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|110–113}}<ref name=marathon>{{cite journal |last1=Mailler |first1=EA |last2=Adams |first2=BB |title=The wear and tear of 26.2: dermatological injuries reported on marathon day. |journal=British Journal of Sports Medicine |date=August 2004 |volume=38 |issue=4 |pages=498–501 |doi=10.1136/bjsm.2004.011874 |pmid=15273194 |pmc=1724877 }}</ref> Foot deformation and dysfunction can encourage calluses to form.<ref name=marathon/>
====Jogger's toes====
If the toe box does not have enough room around the toes, or the foot can slide forwards far enough to jam the toes into the end of the toe box, it can also cause [[Subungual hematoma|black toenail]] (also known as jogger's toe).<ref name=marathon/> The toes also need vertical space; a toe cap which is low enough to press on the top of the toe may also cause bruising under the nail, especially if the toe cap is stiff. If the toe box is pointed, the toes may be wedged forwards into the area with inadequate height.<ref name=usmilit />{{rp|52–53,135}}
====Ingrown toenails====
Narrow pointed shoes (or tight socks) can be a factor in causing ingrown toenails.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Haneke |first1=E |title=Controversies in the treatment of ingrown nails. |journal=Dermatology Research and Practice |date=2012 |volume=2012 |pages=783924 |doi=10.1155/2012/783924 |pmid=22675345 |pmc=3362847 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
==Vertical profile==
Toes boxes are either structured (with a three-dimensional shape, often produced with a thermoplastic interlayer) or unstructured. Structuring mostly affects the depth of the toe box.<ref>{{cite web |title=Structured vs Unstructured Toe Box and Shoe Sizing |url=https://auntay.com/structured-vs-unstructured-toe-shoe-sizing/ |website=Aun Three Photography |date=24 January 2018}}</ref> Some [[moccasins]] have wide, unstructured toe boxes, somewhat loose on the foot, which allow toe splay.<ref name=why>{{cite web|author=Justin|title=Why Toe Shoes? The Benefits of Toe Separation for Barefoot Feel and Shoe Functionality|url=https://birthdayshoes.com/why-toe-shoes|website=Birthday Shoes|date=Mar 21, 2011}}</ref> Many toe boxes also include toe spring, where the sole curves up towards the toes. When the shoe is flexible enough to bend with the foot, at the ball of the foot, this is not needed.{{citation needed|date=November 2019}} Most toe boxes, at a point {{convert|5|cm|abbr=on}} from the tip, are roughly {{convert|44|mm|abbr=on}} deep, regardless of style.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kaye |first1=RA |title=The extra-depth toe box: a rational approach. |journal=Foot & Ankle International |date=March 1994 |volume=15 |issue=3 |pages=146–50 |doi=10.1177/107110079401500310 |pmid=7951943|s2cid=25641541 }}</ref> Especially wide and deep toe boxes may be used to provide space for foot deformities and foot orthotics.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Frecklington |first1=M |last2=Dalbeth |first2=N|author2-link= Nicola Dalbeth |last3=McNair |first3=P |last4=Gow |first4=P |last5=Williams |first5=A |last6=Carroll |first6=M |last7=Rome |first7=K |title=Footwear interventions for foot pain, function, impairment and disability for people with foot and ankle arthritis: A literature review. |journal=Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism |date=June 2018 |volume=47 |issue=6 |pages=814–824 |doi=10.1016/j.semarthrit.2017.10.017 |pmid=29174793 |doi-access=free |hdl=10292/12670 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>
<gallery>
File:Boots, pair, man's (AM 1931.576-1).jpg|A pair of boots with symmetrically-pointed unstructured square toe boxes.
File:Lithuanian clogs.jpg|Entirely wooden [[clogs]] are rigid. While they are fairly foot-shaped inside, they often have bulky, pointed "duck-tail" external toe boxes, with substantial external toe spring.
File:Bundesarchiv Bild 194-0097-02, Holtwick, Mädchen auf dem Schulweg.jpg|The internal and external shape of a wooden clog allows the shoes to rock forwards, so the foot can push off in a fairly normal gait.
</gallery>
==Horizontal profile==
Toe boxes also come in various widths and horizontal-plane shapes. Foot-shaped toe boxes are rare.<ref name=footshape/> Most toe boxes are widest at the ball of the foot, then taper towards the toes, although the foot widens from the base of the toes forwards.<ref>{{cite web |title=Wide Shoes vs. Wide Toe Box: What Keeps Feet Comfortable? |url=https://www.somfootwear.com/blogs/news/wide-shoes-vs-wide-toe-box-what-keeps-feet-comfortable |website=SOM Sense Of Motion Footwear |language=en}}</ref> Toe boxes often taper symmetrically, from both sides;<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Branthwaite |first1=H |last2=Chockalingam |first2=N |last3=Greenhalgh |first3=A |title=The effect of shoe toe box shape and volume on forefoot interdigital and plantar pressures in healthy females. |journal=Journal of Foot and Ankle Research |date=2013 |volume=6 |pages=28 |doi=10.1186/1757-1146-6-28 |pmid=23886242|pmc=3737013 |doi-access=free }}</ref> feet do not. If toe box taper is wide enough that it is outside the space needed by the foot, a tapered toe box can be comfortable.<ref name=footshape>{{cite web |last1=Larson |first1=Peter |title=Altra Instinct Running Shoe Review: Zero Drop, Foot Shaped, and Cushioned |url=https://runblogger.com/2011/03/altra-instinct-running-shoe-review-zero.html |website=runblogger.com |date=March 30, 2011}}</ref> Many shoes have a toe box which is excessively narrow in relation to heel width; if a sufficiently wide toe box can be picked out, the shoe will often be loose on the heel. Some shoe manufacturers make "split sizes", where the toe and heel size are varied independently, on a [[combination last]].<ref name=cost>{{cite journal |last1=Coughlin |first1=MJ |last2=Thompson |first2=FM |title=The high price of high-fashion footwear. |journal=Instructional Course Lectures |date=1995 |volume=44 |issue=10 |pages=371–7 |doi=10.2106/00004623-199410000-00022 |pmid=7797875 |s2cid=29979737 |url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/108b/86467a149711f635e6583a352e928b2ab1b3.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118004331/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/108b/86467a149711f635e6583a352e928b2ab1b3.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-11-18 }}</ref>
There are periodic fashions for pointy-toes shoes. Pointy-toed [[poulaines]] were fashionable in the 14th and 15th centuries. Skeletons of people who lived in this time are much more likely to have bunions, and richer people, who were more likely to wear pointy-toed shoes, were more likely to have bunions.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Dittmar|first1=Jenna|last2=Mitchell|first2=Piers|title=Fashion for pointy shoes unleashed a wave of bunions in medieval England|url=http://theconversation.com/fashion-for-pointy-shoes-unleashed-a-wave-of-bunions-in-medieval-england-162570|access-date=2021-06-28|website=The Conversation|date=11 June 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|date=2021-06-11|title=Fancy shoes and painful feet: Hallux valgus and fracture risk in medieval Cambridge, England|journal=International Journal of Paleopathology|language=en|doi=10.1016/j.ijpp.2021.04.012|issn=1879-9817|doi-access=free|last1=Dittmar|first1=Jenna M.|last2=Mitchell|first2=Piers D.|last3=Cessford|first3=Craig|last4=Inskip|first4=Sarah A.|last5=Robb|first5=John E.|volume=35 |pages=90–100 |pmid=34120868|pmc=8631459 }}</ref> [[Winkle picker]]s, fashionable in the mid 20th century, were also quite pointed.
<gallery mode=packed>
<!--removing due to ethical concerns about image File:Adult foot that has never worn shoes.jpg|The shape of an adult foot which has never worn shoes (left), contrasted with a foot with mild [[bunion]].{{citation needed|date=November 2020}} The longitudinal line is "Meyer's line", a measure of foot deformity.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|104}}-->
File:Birkenstock Mules.jpg|A rounded, asymmetical toe box, probably fairly deep. These are quite toe-shaped toeboxes. The toe box does not narrow on the inside, allowing the big toe to point straight forward
File:2008-08 archeon schnabelschuh.JPG|[[Poulaine]]s are [[turnshoes]] which have toe boxes with protruding points.
<!--File:Shoes MET DP101959.jpg|Duckbill shoe-->
File:Gerard_David_-_The_Marriage_at_Cana_%28cropped_to_foreground_shoes%29.jpg|[[Duckbill shoes]] came into fashion as poulaines went out of fashion.
File:Plateau region moccasins, 1900-1930 - Bata Shoe Museum - DSC00545.JPG|[[Moccasins]] are [[turnshoes]]. These ones have wide, asymmetrical, rounded toe boxes
</gallery>
==Split toe boxes==
Some toe boxes are split. Some are split into two pockets, like those of {{transliteration|ja|[[jika-tabi]]}}; others are split into more pockets. Five-pocket toe boxes, with one pocket per toe, can be difficult to fit, as each pocket may be too long, too short, too wide, or too narrow. Splitting the toe box helps allow toe splay and gripping.<ref>{{cite web |title=Split Toe (Tabi) Shoes and Why You Want Them |url=http://toesalad.com/articles/split-toe-tabi-shoes-and-why-you-want-them/ |website=Toe Salad |language=en}}</ref><ref name=why/>
<gallery>
File:Jika-tabi.jpg|{{transliteration|ja|[[Jika-tabi]]}} with a split two-pocket {{transliteration|ja|[[tabi]]}} toe box
File:Inov8 Evoskin Minimalist Shoes.jpg|Five-toed shoes, transparent. It can be seen that the wearer's big toes are a bit too long for their pockets, and the small toes too short.
File:Zehenstegschuh.jpg|A more conventional shoe with a five-pocket toe box
File:Happy Birthday Son - Skele-Toes (5878956020).jpg|Four-pocket toe box
</gallery>
==Applications==
===Military===
An early 20th century survey by the [[United States Army Medical Corps]]'s Army Shoe Board found that less than five percent of the enlisted men had good feet, and attributed most of the problems to poor shoe fit (including civilian shoes).<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|101–102}} The toe boxes of the new military-issue shoes were therefore designed to fit mildly deformed rather than undeformed feet.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|104–105}} The Shoe Board recognized that fit would be imperfect, and recommended breaking in new shoes rapidly by standing in them in {{convert|3|in}} of water for up to 5 minutes, to soak the leather through, and then walking on a level surface outdoors for up to 1 hour, or until the shoes have dried. Failing this, they suggested breaking them in by wearing them for initially short periods, progressively lengthened, to break in the shoe rather than the foot. They also recommended using special shoe stretchers with removable pegs to stretch the toe boxes wider, and stretch bumps over blisters, corns, and bunions.<ref name=usmilit/>{{rp|88–90}}
===Ballet===
[[File:Pointe shoe toe box.jpg|thumb|left|Toe box of a ballet shoe, a rigid shell tightly covered in satin. The flat platform at the end of the toe box bears the dancer's whole weight when ''en pointe''.]]
Ballet [[pointe shoes]] have highly specialized toe boxes, as the end of the toe boxes, called the platform, must bear a dancer's entire weight when dancing ''en pointe''. This is a [[pressure]] of about 220 psi or 1.5 MPa. When a dancer leaps and lands ''en pointe'', the higher [[transient load]], acting on the same area, briefly creates a much higher pressure. The toe box is a rigid socket, built from layers of paper, glue, and fabric (usually [[burlap]]), and covered with a satin fabric. They sometimes contain plastic, but this tends to produce a stiff shoe and is not popular. The toe boxes start out too stiff to dance in, and must be broken in; after a certain amount of dancing, depending on technique and conditions, the toe boxes become too soft to support the foot. Reinforcement with fresh glue may postpone the date when the shoes must be replaced.<ref name=ballet>{{cite web |last1=Shah |first1=Selina |title=Pointe shoes complicate biomechanics of ballet|url=https://lermagazine.com/article/pointe-shoes-complicate-biomechanics-of-balle |website=Lower Extremity Review Magazine |date=April 2010}}</ref>
The toe box of a pointe shoe must be carefully fitted, with width of the toe box according with the dancer's toe shape. When the dancer stand with the feet pointing straight ahead and parallel (sixth position), and bends their knees deeply without raising their heels from the floor (a demi-plié), the feet lengthen; the toes should just touch the platform when in this position. The top of the toe box should be long enough that the throat (edge) falls a bit beyond the far end of the third [[phalanges|phalanx]], covering it entirely. Dancers often wear specialized padding around and between their toes.<ref name=ballet/>
==Creasing==
A stiff, multipiece shoe with toe caps, which has been left on the [[shoe last|last]] a long time, will crease less across the toe box. Leather quality has little effect. Using a shoe tree and a shoehorn will reduce creasing. Creasing is a cosmetic concern, but generally does not impair function.<ref>{{cite web |title=4 Factors That Lead To Unsightly Leather Dress Shoe Creasing And How to Prevent Them |url=https://custommade.com.sg/blog/4-factors-that-lead-to-unsightly-casual-formal-leather-dress-shoes-creasing-and-how-to-prevent-them |website=CustomMade}}</ref>
==See also==
* [[Steel-toe boot]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Footwear components]]