Gait analysis in Cedar Hill, MO. Gait analysis, also called motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare professionals can examine your movement to offer better care and get you back to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete recovering from an injury or you’re trying to cope with arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed treatment plan that’s customized for your lifestyle and goals.

Your Cedar Hill, MO physical therapist can use gait analysis to:

• Identify and manage gait disorders
• Uncover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that causes pain or affects movement health
• Evaluate and monitor treatment outcomes
• Prevent and recover from injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Find footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Cedar Hill, 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 would be beneficial 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 gaining precise information about how you walk and run, your physical therapist can offer insights into muscle imbalances, injury risks, the progress 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 Cedar Hill, 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 Cedar Hill, MO physical therapist can personalize your treatment and help you get the most benefit for your movement health and fitness.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Cedar Hill, MO

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

• Athletes seeking a competitive edge in their sport — Proper form becomes crucial at the peak of sports. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify strength imbalances and limited range of motion, 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 ensure that your body is recuperating and building strength correctly.
• Others recovering from injury — Whether you were injured at work, in a slip and fall, or underwent recent surgery, you don’t have to be an athlete to gain positives from gait analysis in facilitating your recuperation from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned veteran, gait analysis can help you in finding the appropriate footwear, which, together with further insights from gait analysis, can boost your speed, preserve energy, and minimize the probability of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can drastically disrupt your movement health, along with causing phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices specifically designed to your body and lifestyle. It can also help you in adapting to your new device and optimizing its function and comfort.
• People with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can significantly affect our daily lives and mobility health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to observe disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and shape rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies inevitably lose strength as we age. This can result in an elevated risk of falling for older adults, as well as degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can provide assistance in discovering ways to lessen pressure on aching joints, reduce injury risks, and assess the cognitive and motor aspects of mobility health.

Regardless of why you’re seeking out physical therapy, whether it’s striving to eventually run that marathon or just enjoy your day-to-day life without pain, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Cedar Hill, MO will utilize gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in getting back to the activities you love.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are commonly two main types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this technique entails a physical therapist directly watching your gait as you walk and through video recordings. It enables the physical therapist to obtain a broad overview of your movement health and effortlessly spot any observable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis relies on the clinical expertise of the therapist to reach conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this method employs specific technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By utilizing precise numerical values, it allows more thorough analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both qualitative and quantitative gait analysis are appropriate in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Cedar Hill, MO possesses the capabilities and knowledge to customize our gait analysis services to meet your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Cedar Hill, MO

At Axes, our main aim is delivering positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in getting back to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we make use of every available tool to support our patients in Cedar Hill, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Cedar Hill, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists employ state-of-the-art DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer both qualitative and quantitative services.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are positioned on your body that track your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software translates that complex data into helpful information that your physical therapist can review
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to enable a more thorough analysis and examination of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist incorporates these insights with their clinical observations to recommend successful, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly tracked over time and compared against the typical population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Cedar Hill, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is dedicated to providing our Cedar Hill, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that align with their lifestyles and objectives. Gait analysis can be part of your personalized treatment plan:

• To get started, ask your doctor if gait analysis might be beneficial for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a free injury screening.
• We’ll carry out a comprehensive history taking and physical examination to understand your goals, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll create a partnership with you and your doctor, integrating the findings of gait analysis into your holistic treatment approach, enhancing your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll create personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been confirmed through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their success.
• In addition to providing physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in selecting suitable footwear, braces, or other devices, while educating you on achieving proper posture and enhancing movement health, utilizing insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, alongside other measurable data and markers, to continuously review your progress and adapt your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes provides a lot more than simply a list of exercises to check off. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and state-of-the-art technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a dedicated team of physical therapists in Cedar Hill, MO who are motivated to deliver excellent results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Cedar Hill, 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 Cedar Hill, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can significantly improve your overall well-being and movement health, whether that means flying down the court or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are dedicated to offering individualized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are the limited number of clinics in the Cedar Hill, 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 determine if gait analysis in Cedar Hill, MO is suitable for you.