STAR-BULLETIN / MARCH 2006
Honolulu ranked as the seventh-most "walkable city" in a study of nearly 500 cities. Here, pedestrians walking along King Street are reflected in a wall fronting the Cades-Wright Building.
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Honolulu near the top for being sweet to feet
Honolulu ranked as the seventh-most "walkable city" in a study of nearly 500 cities compiled by the American Podiatric Medical Association and Prevention magazine.
The nation's best cities for walking
1. Cambridge, Mass.
2. New York
3. Ann Arbor, Mich.
4. Chicago
5. Washington, D.C.
6. San Francisco
7. Honolulu
8. Trenton, N.J.
9. Boston
10. Cincinnati
Sources: American Podiatric Medical Association and Prevention magazine
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APMA President Ross Taubman presented an award to Mayor Mufi Hannemann yesterday at the opening of the organization's annual scientific meeting.
"Honolulu is one of the nation's best, most walkable cities, and I can honestly say that I've been doing a lot of walking and enjoying it tremendously since I arrived," Taubman said.
Exhibits at the conference, held at the Hawai'i Convention Center, present the latest in shoes and socks for walkers, runners, golfers, tennis players and people with foot problems.
Advances in treatments for various foot ailments and wounds are highlighted by vendors and in lectures throughout the meetings, which end Sunday.
About 3,500 people are here for the convention, including 1,500 podiatrists, families and company representatives. Podiatrists are doctors concerned with diagnosing and treating conditions affecting the foot, ankle and related structures, including the leg and systemic conditions.
One study presented at the meeting said 15 seconds in a doctor's office can be all it takes to prevent a diabetic amputation. The paper described new technology called Hyperspectral Transcutaneous Oxygen Monitoring, which measures real-time oxygen levels surrounding foot ulcerations seen in patients with type 1 and 2 diabetes.
Aksone Nouvong, podiatric physician associated with the study and an assistant professor at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine, said hyperspectral imaging will become one of the major tools physicians can use to assist diabetic patients with wound treatment.
If a patient already has a foot wound, she said, the technology can tell immediately whether the ulcer is able to heal on its own.
The walking study this year was the biggest conducted by the Bethesda, Md. -based APMA, with cities judged on more than 13 criteria. City planners and pedestrian coordinators reviewed the cities.
CORRECTION Thursday, August 7, 2008
The American Podiatric Medical Association is based in Bethesda, Md. Originally, this article said the group is based in Boston.
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