Page 25 - IMPRESSION Newsletter March19

STRANGE H ISTORY

The Shoe Fitting

Fluoroscope

It is often interesting to look
back on the commonplace items of the

past that we consider obvious hazards
today. One such item was the shoe

fitting fluoroscope

During the 1930s, 1940s and
1950s, the shoe fitting fluoroscope

was a fixture found in many shoe
stores. These devices consisted of a It wasn’t until early 1946, that

vertical wooden cabinet with a foot safety concerns began to be
opening near the bottom and three considered. Within the next 10 years
viewing ports to view the image of the a myriad varying standards were
enacted. In 1957, Pennsylvania
bones of the feet and the outline of the became the first state to ban the use
shoe.
of the shoe fitting fluoroscopes.
The machines usually used By 1960, attempts to impose

about 50 kv at 3-8 mA. The units regulatory restrictions on this
often had a push button timer that dangerous device, would lead to the

could be set for an exposure time
anywhere from 5 to 45 seconds. In end of its use in the U.S. However, its
most cases though, the timers were use in Canada and the UK continued

set for 20 seconds. in a limited extent until 1970.
Ultimately, many shoes stores

were glad to get rid of the machines

as surveys would show that most

shoe salesmen saw it as more of a
gimmick than a useful tool.