Gait analysis in Champ, MO. Gait analysis, in combination with video motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare professionals can assess your movement to offer better treatment and return you to the things you love most. 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 plan of care that’s personalized for your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Identify and manage gait disorders
• Find out hidden musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that leads to pain or impacts movement health
• Assess and track treatment outcomes
• Prevent and rehab injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Choose footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Champ, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. 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 understanding how you walk and run, 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 combination 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 Champ, 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 precise understanding of your gait, your Champ, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Champ, MO

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

• Athletes seeking a competitive edge — Correct form becomes essential at the zenith of sports. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address strength imbalances and range of motion limitations, and prevent injury.
• Athletes healing from injury — If you’re coming back from 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 recovering and developing strength properly.
• Others recovering from injury — Whether you were injured at work, involved in a car accident, or underwent recent surgery, you don’t have to be an athlete to experience advantages from gait analysis in facilitating your healing from trauma.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned vet, gait analysis can assist you in discovering the appropriate footwear, which, coupled with further insights from gait analysis, can boost your speed, preserve energy, and minimize the risk of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can greatly interrupt your movement 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 assist you in adjusting to your new device and maximizing its performance and convenience.
• Those with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can greatly affect our day-to-day functioning and movement health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to observe disease progression, assess treatment effectiveness, and direct rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally lose strength as we age. This may lead to an elevated risk of falling for older adults, as well as degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can provide assistance in discovering ways to lessen pressure on sore joints, mitigate injury risks, and assess the cognitive and motor facets of mobility health.

Regardless of why you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s striving to ultimately run that marathon or simply engage in your daily life without pain, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Champ, MO will apply gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in returning to the pursuits 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 approach entails a physical therapist directly watching your gait in real time and through video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to obtain a general overview of your movement health and effortlessly identify any observable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis relies on the clinical expertise of the therapist to draw conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs specialized technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to deliver objective, quantifiable data regarding your gait. By using precise numerical values, it allows greater thorough analysis and monitoring of your progress over a period of time.

Both clinical and quantitative gait analysis are suitable in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Champ, MO possesses the capacity and expertise to customize our gait analysis services to meet your particular needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Champ, MO

At Axes, our main goal is achieving positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in returning to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we utilize every available tool to support our patients in Champ, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Champ, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists employ advanced DorsaVi video motion analysis to provide combined qualitative and quantitative analysis.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are positioned on your body that record your movement, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software translates that complex data into valuable information that your physical therapist can review
• During playback, your movements are slowed down to enable a more detailed analysis and examination of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist combines these insights with their professional observations to recommend efficient, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is continuously monitored over time and compared against the normal population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Champ, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Champ, MO patients with successful, safe, and scientifically validated treatment plans that suit their lifestyles and goals. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your individualized treatment plan:

• To start the process, speak with your doctor to evaluate if gait analysis may be advantageous for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a complimentary injury screening.
• We’ll perform a comprehensive history taking and physical examination to understand your objectives, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll create a partnership with you and your doctor, including the findings of gait analysis into your all-encompassing treatment approach, optimizing your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll develop personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been proven through research and scholarly studies, ensuring their success.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in choosing proper footwear, braces, or alternative devices, while informing you on sustaining proper posture and enhancing movement health, incorporating insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, together with other measurable data and markers, to consistently assess your progress and adjust your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes offers much more than just a list of exercises to complete. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and state-of-the-art technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a specialized team of physical therapists in Champ, MO who are driven to deliver the best results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Champ, MO include:

• 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
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment

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

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can significantly enhance your overall health and movement health, whether that involves flying down the court or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are dedicated to providing customized treatment plans that are proven to work, we’re the limited number of clinics in the Champ, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to optimize your movement health, contact the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Champ, MO is right for you.