Gait analysis in Affton, MO. Gait analysis, alongside video motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners can examine your mobility to offer better treatment and return you to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete recovering from an injury or you’re trying to manage chronic pain, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed plan of care that’s customized for your lifestyle and goals.

Your Affton, MO physical therapist can use gait analysis to:

• Diagnose and treat gait disorders
• Discover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that causes pain or impacts movement health
• Evaluate and monitor treatment outcomes
• Prevent and rehabilitate injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Choose footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Affton, MO, our staff of physical therapists are dedicated to one thing: getting you back to what you enjoy most. If you’re wondering if gait analysis is right for you, call the Axes’ location most convenient for you or make an appointment through our website to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When done by qualified physical therapists, gait analysis is an assessment of how you move, specifically how you walk and run. By understanding how you move, your physical therapist can offer insights into muscle imbalances, injury risks, the status of injury rehabilitation, and more. Because our gaits our the result of a multitude of factors – strength, flexibility, coordination, vision, the vestibular system – gait analysis can provide a valuable look at your overall movement health.

In a gait analysis appointment, your Axes physical therapist in Affton, MO will look at:

• Step length and width
• Cadence (number of steps taken per minute)
• Foot and ankle alignment to see if you have tendencies towards pronation (inward rolling) or supination (outward rolling)
• Joint movement and range of motion
• Movement of the pelvis to see if there is excessive rotating or titling
• Stability, balance, and body sway (the amount of lateral movement)
• Step repeatability (the similarity of your steps)

With a accurate understanding of your gait, your Affton, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Affton, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a therapy in and of itself, it provides essential insights to your physical therapist about your motion, allowing them to offer more targeted and personalized care. As such, gait analysis can benefit a wide range of people in Affton, MO:

• Athletes searching for a competitive edge — Correct form becomes essential at the pinnacle of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address strength imbalances and limited range of motion, and prevent injury.
• Athletes healing from injury — If you’re coming off an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to track how your recovery’s going and confirm that your body is healing and developing strength adequately.
• Others recovering from injury — Whether you were injured on the job, in a slip and fall, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to experience benefits from gait analysis in facilitating your recovery from trauma.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned veteran, gait analysis can assist you in finding the appropriate footwear, which, together with other insights from gait analysis, can enhance your speed, save energy, and reduce the chance of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can significantly disrupt your mobility health, along with resulting in phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices specifically designed to your body and lifestyle. It can furthermore assist you in adapting to your new device and maximizing its function and comfort.
• People with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can significantly affect our daily lives and movement health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to monitor disease progression, evaluate treatment effectiveness, and direct rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally weaken as we age. This may lead to an heightened risk of falling for older adults, as well as degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can be beneficial in finding ways to lessen pressure on sore joints, minimize injury risks, and evaluate the cognitive and motor facets of mobility health.

Regardless of why you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s striving to eventually run that marathon or just enjoy your daily life without pain, Axes’ licensed therapists in Affton, MO will utilize gait analysis to personalize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in returning to the experiences you love.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are typically two main types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this method entails a physical therapist directly observing your gait in real time and via video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to obtain a general assessment of your movement health and easily identify any observable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis depends on the clinical expertise of the therapist to draw conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this technique employs specific technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to offer objective, quantifiable data regarding your gait. By utilizing precise numerical values, it enables more in-depth analysis and tracking of your improvement over a period of time.

Both clinical and instrument-assisted gait analysis are suitable in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Affton, MO possesses the capacity and expertise to personalize our gait analysis services to address your specific needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Affton, MO

At Axes, our main goal is delivering positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in getting back to what they love most. To accomplish this, we utilize every available tool to support our patients in Affton, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Affton, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists utilize advanced DorsaVi video motion analysis to provide combined qualitative and quantitative services.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are positioned on your body that monitor your movement, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software converts that complex data into helpful information that your physical therapist can analyze
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to aid a more comprehensive analysis and examination of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist integrates these insights with their professional observations to prescribe effective, proven treatment modalities
• Your progress is continuously tracked over time and compared against the average population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Affton, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Affton, MO patients with successful, safe, and scientifically validated treatment plans that fit their lifestyles and goals. Gait analysis can be part of your personalized treatment plan:

• To start the process, ask your doctor if gait analysis might be beneficial for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a no-risk, no-obligation injury screening.
• We’ll conduct a detailed history taking and physical examination to gain insight into your goals, preferences, and health background.
• We’ll build a team with you and your doctor, integrating the findings of gait analysis into your comprehensive treatment approach, optimizing your mobility health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll design personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been proven through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their efficacy.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll help you in selecting proper footwear, braces, or other devices, while informing you on achieving proper posture and improving movement health, utilizing insights obtained from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, together with other measurable data and markers, to constantly evaluate your progress and modify your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes offers a lot more than just a series of exercises to tick off. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and advanced technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a specialized team of physical therapists in Affton, MO who are determined to provide excellent results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Affton, MO include:

• Neck Pain Treatment
• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation

Call Axes’ for Your Gait Analysis in Affton, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can greatly improve your overall health and movement health, whether that means moving down the court or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are dedicated to offering customized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are the few clinics in the Affton, MO area that provide video motion analysis. If you want to optimize your movement health, reach out to the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Affton, MO is appropriate for you.