Gait analysis in Argentville, MO. Gait analysis, also known as motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare providers can assess your movement to offer better therapy and return you to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete dealing with an injury or you’re trying to manage chronic pain, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed treatment plan that’s personalized for your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Diagnose and treat gait disorders
• Discover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that leads to pain or impacts movement health
• Assess and track treatment outcomes
• Prevent and recover from injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Choose footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Argentville, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: getting you back to what you enjoy most. If you’re curious if gait analysis can help you, call the Axes’ location closest to you or request an appointment online to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When performed by licensed physical therapists, gait analysis is an assessment of how you move, specifically how you walk and run. By gaining precise information about 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 product of a combination of factors – strength, flexibility, coordination, vision, the vestibular system – gait analysis can provide a valuable look at what may be affecting your movement health.

In a gait analysis appointment, your Axes physical therapist in Argentville, 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 precise insights into your gait, your Argentville, MO physical therapist can tailor your treatment and help you achieve the most rewards for your movement health and fitness.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Argentville, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment by itself, it provides valuable information to your physical therapist about your motion, allowing them to offer more focused and customized care. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Argentville, MO:

• Athletes seeking a competitive edge in their sport — Proper form becomes crucial at the peak of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify strength imbalances and restricted mobility, and prevent injury.
• Athletes recovering from injury — If you’re coming off an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to monitor how your recovery’s going and confirm that your body is healing and developing strength correctly.
• Others recovering from injury — Whether you were injured on the job, involved in a car accident, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to derive advantages from gait analysis in facilitating your healing from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned runner, gait analysis can help you in identifying the right footwear, which, coupled with other insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, conserve energy, and minimize the risk of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can significantly disrupt your mobility health, as well as resulting in phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices tailored to your body and lifestyle. It can also support you in adjusting to your new device and optimizing its performance and convenience.
• People with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can greatly affect our day-to-day functioning and movement health. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to observe disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and shape rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies inevitably weaken as we age. This can result in an increased risk of falling for older adults, along with degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can offer support in identifying ways to alleviate pressure on aching joints, minimize injury risks, and assess the cognitive and motor elements of mobility health.

No matter the reason you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s striving to finally run that marathon or simply enjoy your day-to-day life without pain, Axes’ licensed therapists in Argentville, MO will apply gait analysis to customize your treatment, maximize your care, and help you in getting back to the experiences you cherish.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are generally two main types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this technique entails a physical therapist directly observing your gait in real time and via video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to acquire a general overview of your movement health and easily identify any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis relies on the professional judgment 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 provide objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By using precise numerical values, it allows greater detailed analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both qualitative and instrument-assisted gait analysis are appropriate in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Argentville, MO possesses the capabilities and knowledge to personalize our gait analysis services to fulfill your specific needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Argentville, MO

At Axes, our main goal is achieving positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in returning to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we make use of every possible tool to support our patients in Argentville, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Argentville, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists employ cutting-edge DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer both qualitative and quantitative analysis.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are attached to 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 analyze
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to enable a more detailed analysis and breakdown of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist combines these insights with their professional observations to prescribe successful, proven treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly tracked over time and compared against the normal population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Argentville, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Argentville, MO patients with effective, safe, and scientifically validated treatment plans that align with their lifestyles and objectives. Gait analysis can be included in your customized treatment plan:

• To get started, speak with your doctor to determine if gait analysis might be advantageous for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a free injury screening.
• We’ll conduct a comprehensive patient interview and physical examination to understand your goals, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll create a partnership with you and your doctor, incorporating the results of gait analysis into your holistic treatment approach, optimizing your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll create personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been proven through research and scholarly studies, ensuring their efficacy.
• In addition to providing physical therapy exercises, we’ll assist you in choosing appropriate footwear, braces, or alternative devices, while informing you on achieving proper posture and optimizing movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll utilize gait analysis, together with other measurable data and markers, to consistently assess your progress and adjust your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes provides much more than simply a series of exercises to complete. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and innovative technologies at our disposal, Axes offers a committed team of physical therapists in Argentville, MO who are driven to provide the best results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Argentville, MO include:

• 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
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

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

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can greatly contribute to your overall well-being and movement health, regardless of whether that involves gliding down the field or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to offering customized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are among the limited number of clinics in the Argentville, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to improve your movement health, reach out to the nearest Axes location or contact us online to determine if gait analysis in Argentville, MO is suitable for you.