Gait analysis in Desloge, 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 enjoy most. Whether you’re an athlete healing from an injury or you’re trying to manage arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed plan of care that’s personalized for your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Diagnose and treat gait disorders
• Find out underlying musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that leads to pain or affects movement health
• Assess and track 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 Desloge, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. If you’re wondering if gait analysis can help you, call the Axes’ location nearest you or schedule an appointment online to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When performed by professional 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 recovery, and more. Because our gaits our the product of a variety 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 Desloge, 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 Desloge, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Desloge, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a healing method in and of itself, it provides valuable data to your physical therapist about your motion, allowing them to offer more focused and personalized approach. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Desloge, MO:

• Athletes looking for a performance boost — Proper form becomes vital at the highest level of athletic competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify strength imbalances and range of motion limitations, and prevent injury.
• Athletes recovering from injury — If you’re recovering 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 building strength appropriately.
• Anyone else recovering from injury — Whether you were injured at work, involved in a car accident, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to gain benefits from gait analysis in aiding your recovery from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned vet, gait analysis can help you in finding the right footwear, which, along with additional insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, preserve energy, and reduce the risk of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can significantly disrupt your movement health, as well as causing phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices customized to your body and lifestyle. It can furthermore assist you in adapting to your new device and optimizing its function and convenience.
• People with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can significantly influence our daily functioning and movement health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to track disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and guide rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally weaken as we age. This can cause an elevated risk of falling for older adults, in addition to degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can be beneficial in finding ways to relieve pressure on sore joints, mitigate injury risks, and assess the cognitive and motor elements of movement health.

Regardless of why you’re seeking out physical therapy, whether it’s working to finally run that marathon or simply engage in your day-to-day life without pain, Axes’ licensed therapists in Desloge, MO will employ gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in returning to the pursuits you enjoy.

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 obtain a broad assessment of your movement health and easily spot any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis relies on the professional judgment of the therapist to make assessments.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs specialized technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By using precise numerical values, it allows more in-depth analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both qualitative and instrument-assisted gait analysis are suitable in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Desloge, MO has the capabilities and expertise to customize our gait analysis services to address your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Desloge, MO

At Axes, our main focus is achieving positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in getting back to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we make use of every possible tool that can help our patients in Desloge, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Desloge, MO, our experienced physical therapists employ state-of-the-art DorsaVi video motion analysis to provide combined qualitative and quantitative analysis.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are placed on your body that track your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software interprets that complicated data into useful information that your physical therapist can review
• During playback, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more comprehensive analysis and examination of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist combines these insights with their professional observations to prescribe efficient, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is continuously tracked over time and compared against the average population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Desloge, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is devoted to delivering our Desloge, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that suit their lifestyles and goals. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your personalized treatment plan:

• To get started, ask your doctor if gait analysis could be helpful for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a complimentary injury screening.
• We’ll conduct a thorough history taking and assessment to understand your goals, preferences, and health background.
• We’ll form a partnership with you and your doctor, integrating the insights from gait analysis into your all-encompassing treatment approach, optimizing your mobility health, and promoting overall wellness.
• We’ll design personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been validated through research and scholarly studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
• In addition to providing physical therapy exercises, we’ll help you in choosing suitable footwear, braces, or other devices, while informing you on sustaining proper posture and optimizing movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, alongside other measurable information and indicators, to consistently assess your growth and adapt your treatment plan as needed.

Axes offers far more than just a series of exercises to tick off. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and cutting-edge technologies at our disposal, Axes offers a specialized team of physical therapists in Desloge, MO who are determined to provide optimal results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Desloge, 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 Desloge, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can positively improve your overall well-being and movement health, regardless of whether that involves flying down the field or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to providing personalized treatment plans that are proven to work, we are among the few clinics in the Desloge, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to improve your movement health, call the nearest Axes location or contact us online to determine if gait analysis in Desloge, MO is suitable for you.