Gait Analysis in Fenton, MO | Physical & Occupational Therapy

Gait analysis in Fenton, MO. Gait analysis, in combination with video motion analysis, is a method used by physical therapists and other healthcare providers to assess your mobility to offer better therapy and get you back to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete recovering 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 customized for your lifestyle and goals.

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

Identify and manage gait disorders
Discover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that results in pain or affects movement health
Measure and follow treatment outcomes
Prevent and rehab injuries
Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
Select footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Fenton, MO, our team of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: getting you back to what you love most. If you’re curious if gait analysis would be beneficial for 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 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 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 product 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 Fenton, 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 Fenton, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Fenton, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment by itself, it offers important data to your physical therapist about your movement health, allowing them to offer more targeted and customized approach. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Fenton, MO:

Athletes looking for a competitive advantage — Proper form becomes increasingly important at the highest level of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify muscle imbalances and restricted mobility, and prevent injury.
Athletes healing from injury — If you’re recovering from an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to monitor your progress and confirm that your body is recuperating and gaining strength correctly.
Anyone else recovering from injury — Whether you were injured on the job, in a slip and fall, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to derive positives from gait analysis in aiding your healing from trauma.
Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re an experienced runner, gait analysis can help you in identifying the right footwear, which, together with further insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, preserve energy, and lower the risk of injury.
Amputees — Having a limb removed can drastically interrupt your mobility health, in addition to 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 additionally help you in acclimating to your new device and optimizing its performance and convenience.
People suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can profoundly influence our daily lives and movement health. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to track disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and direct rehabilitation strategies.
Older adults — Our bodies inevitably weaken as we age. This can result in an elevated risk of falling for older adults, along with degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can be beneficial in identifying ways to lessen pressure on sore joints, reduce injury risks, and examine the cognitive and motor facets of movement health.

Regardless of why you’re seeking out physical therapy, whether it’s working to finally run that marathon or just engage in your daily life without pain, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Fenton, MO will apply gait analysis to customize your treatment, maximize your care, and assist you in returning to the experiences you love.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are typically two major types of gait analysis:

Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this technique entails a physical therapist directly observing your gait in real time and through video recordings. It enables the physical therapist to acquire a general overview of your mobility health and readily spot any noticeable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis relies on the clinical expertise of the therapist to draw conclusions.
Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs specific technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, measurable data regarding your gait. By utilizing precise numerical values, it enables more thorough analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both clinical and instrument-assisted gait analysis are appropriate in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Fenton, MO has the capabilities and knowledge to customize our gait analysis services to meet your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Fenton, MO

At Axes, our primary aim is achieving positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in returning to what they love most. To accomplish this, we utilize every available tool that can help our patients in Fenton, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Fenton, MO, our expert physical therapists employ state-of-the-art DorsaVi video motion analysis to provide combined qualitative and quantitative services.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

Sensors are attached to your body that track your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
DorsaVi’s software translates that algorithmic information into valuable information that your physical therapist can examine
During playback, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more comprehensive analysis and breakdown of your movement
Your Axes’ physical therapist integrates these insights with their clinical observations to recommend efficient, proven treatment modalities
Your progress is regularly tracked over time and evaluated against the normal population as well as your prior sessions

Gait Analysis in Fenton, MO | Injury Rehab and Prevention | Physical and Occupational Therapists Near Fenton

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Fenton, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Fenton, MO patients with successful, safe, and research-supported treatment plans that suit their daily lives and goals. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your customized treatment plan:

To begin the process, consult your doctor to evaluate if gait analysis might be advantageous for you, or come to any Axes’ location for a complimentary injury screening.
We’ll perform a detailed patient interview and assessment to gain insight into your goals, preferences, and health background.
We’ll build a partnership with you and your doctor, integrating the insights from gait analysis into your comprehensive treatment approach, enhancing your mobility health, and promoting overall well-being.
We’ll develop personalized treatment plans integrating methodologies that have been confirmed through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll help you in choosing proper footwear, braces, or alternative devices, while informing you on maintaining proper posture and optimizing movement health, incorporating insights acquired from gait analysis.
We’ll employ gait analysis, together with other measurable information and markers, to consistently evaluate your progress and modify your treatment plan as necessary.

Axes provides much more than simply a series of exercises to complete. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and advanced technologies at our fingertips, Axes provides a specialized team of physical therapists in Fenton, MO who are driven to provide excellent results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Fenton, MO include:

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

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can greatly improve your overall health and performance, whether that means flying down the court or going up stairs without discomfort. As we are committed to providing personalized, evidence-based treatment plans, we’re among the few clinics in the Fenton, MO area that provide video motion analysis. If you want to improve your movement health, contact the nearest Axes location or contact us online to find out if gait analysis in Fenton, MO is right for you.

Gait Analysis Fenton, MO