Gait analysis in Antonia, MO. Gait analysis, also called motion analysis, is a method used by physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners to evaluate your movement to offer personalized care and return you to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete recovering from an injury or you’re trying to handle arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed treatment plan that’s tailored to your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Identify and manage gait disorders
• Find out hidden musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that leads to pain or affects movement health
• Evaluate and monitor treatment outcomes
• Prevent and rehab injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Find footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Antonia, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. If you’re wondering if gait analysis is right for you, call the Axes’ location nearest you or make an appointment online to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When done by credentialed physical therapists, gait analysis is an evaluation 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 recovery, 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 what may be keeping you from living the life you want.

In a gait analysis appointment, your Axes physical therapist in Antonia, 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 Antonia, MO physical therapist can tailor your treatment and help you get the most rewards for your movement health and fitness.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Antonia, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment by itself, it offers crucial data to your physical therapist about your motion, allowing them to offer more specific and customized care. As such, gait analysis can positively impact a wide range of people in Antonia, MO:

• Athletes desiring a competitive edge — Correct form becomes increasingly important at the highest level of sports. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address muscle imbalances and range of motion limitations, and prevent injury.
• Athletes recovering from injury — If you’re coming back from an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to track your progress and confirm that your body is healing and gaining strength correctly.
• Anyone else recovering from injury — Whether you were injured at work, in a slip and fall, or had to get surgery, you don’t have to be an athlete to experience positives from gait analysis in aiding your recuperation from trauma.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned runner, gait analysis can aid you in identifying the right footwear, which, together with other insights from gait analysis, can boost your speed, save energy, and lower the risk of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can significantly interrupt your movement health, along with resulting in phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices customized to your body and lifestyle. It can also assist you in acclimating to your new device and maximizing its performance and convenience.
• People with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can greatly influence our day-to-day functioning and mobility health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to monitor disease progression, assess 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, along with degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can offer support in identifying ways to lessen pressure on sore joints, reduce injury risks, and assess the cognitive and motor aspects of movement health.

Regardless of the reason you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s working to eventually run that marathon or simply enjoy your day-to-day life without pain, Axes’ licensed therapists in Antonia, MO will employ gait analysis to personalize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in getting back to the activities you cherish.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are commonly two primary types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this technique entails a physical therapist directly watching your gait in real time and via video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to acquire a general overview of your movement health and readily spot any noticeable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the clinical expertise of the therapist to make assessments.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs advanced technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to offer objective, quantifiable data regarding your gait. By employing precise numerical values, it allows more in-depth analysis and monitoring of your improvement over a period of time.

Both qualitative and quantitative gait analysis are suitable in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Antonia, MO possesses the capacity and knowledge to tailor our gait analysis services to address your specific needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Antonia, MO

At Axes, our primary objective is delivering positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in returning to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we employ every possible tool to support our patients in Antonia, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Antonia, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists utilize advanced DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer combined qualitative and quantitative analysis.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are placed on your body that record your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software converts that algorithmic information into useful information that your physical therapist can examine
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to enable a more detailed analysis and breakdown of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist integrates these insights with their clinical observations to recommend effective, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly tracked over time and evaluated against the average population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Antonia, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Antonia, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that fit their lifestyles and goals. Gait analysis can be included in your individualized treatment plan:

• To start the process, ask your doctor if gait analysis may be beneficial for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a no-risk, no-obligation injury screening.
• We’ll perform a detailed history taking and assessment to understand your goals, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll build a team with you and your doctor, including the insights from gait analysis into your all-encompassing treatment approach, optimizing your mobility health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll develop personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been validated through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their success.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll assist you in selecting appropriate footwear, braces, or other devices, while educating you on achieving proper posture and optimizing movement health, drawing on insights acquired from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, together with other measurable data and indicators, to constantly assess your growth and adjust your treatment plan as necessary.

Axes delivers a lot more than just a series of exercises to complete. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and innovative technologies at our disposal, Axes offers a committed team of physical therapists in Antonia, MO who are motivated to deliver optimal results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Antonia, MO include:

• Shoulder Pain Treatment
• Back Pain Treatment
• 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

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

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can significantly improve your overall well-being and performance, regardless of whether that means flying down the court or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to providing personalized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are among the limited number of clinics in the Antonia, MO area that provide video motion analysis. If you want to enhance your movement health, contact the nearest Axes location or contact us online to find out if gait analysis in Antonia, MO is appropriate for you.