This seems to be a reasonable review of long-term injuries (specifically osteoarthritis): http://www.jaoa.org/content/106/6/342.full http://www.jaoa.org/conten

This seems to be a reasonable review of long-term injuries (specifically osteoarthritis): http://www.jaoa.org/content/106/6/342.full http://www.jaoa.org/content/106/6/342.full I've seen some of the studies referenced in that review, and what I gathered is that elite level running (in shoes) correlates with signs of osteoarthritis (seen in x-rays), but does not correlate with increased symptoms of osteoarthritis (runners did not report more pain than non-runners). If I recall, this was from the small study that included only Finnish elites. Other studies (the Lane study) have not found an increase in signs of osteoarthritis in non-elite (shod) runners. Anyway, it's an interesting question. > To say that barefooters have just as many injuries as other runners might simply be a consequence of many people transitioning too fast from inch-thick heels to barefoot. It may indeed. I'd just like to add that I personally know shod runners who never get injured (former coach), so any hypothesis that claims "shoes lead to acute injury in all cases" is simply false. Of course, the more interesting question is what happens in "most cases".