Gait analysis in Flint Hill, 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 personalized therapy and get you back to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete healing from an injury or you’re trying to cope with arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed plan of care that’s tailored to your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Detect and address gait disorders
• Uncover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that results in pain or impacts movement health
• Assess and track 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 Flint Hill, MO, our team of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: getting you back to what you enjoy most. If you’re wondering if gait analysis is right for you, call the Axes’ location nearest you or make an appointment online 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 understanding how you move, your physical therapist can offer insights into muscle imbalances, injury risks, the progress of injury recovery, and more. Because our gaits our the result 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 Flint 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 a precise understanding of your gait, your Flint Hill, MO physical therapist can tailor your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Flint Hill, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment by itself, it offers essential insights to your physical therapist about your movement health, allowing them to offer more specific and personalized treatment. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Flint Hill, MO:

• Athletes looking for a competitive edge — Correct form becomes vital at the peak of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify strength imbalances and range of motion limitations, 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 building strength adequately.
• Others 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 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 a seasoned runner, gait analysis can help you in discovering the appropriate footwear, which, together with other insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, conserve energy, and lower the chance of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can drastically disrupt your mobility health, along with causing 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 function and comfort.
• Those with neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can greatly influence our everyday functioning and mobility health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to track disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and direct rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally lose strength as we age. This can result in an increased risk of falling for older adults, in addition to degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can offer support in finding ways to relieve pressure on painful 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 aiming to eventually run that marathon or simply engage in your daily life without pain, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Flint Hill, MO will utilize gait analysis to personalize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in getting back to the experiences you cherish.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are typically two main types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this method entails a physical therapist personally watching your gait as you walk and via video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to obtain a overall assessment of your movement health and readily spot any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the clinical expertise of the therapist to draw conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this method employs specialized technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By employing precise numerical values, it enables more detailed 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 Flint Hill, MO has the capacity and expertise to personalize our gait analysis services to address your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Flint Hill, MO

At Axes, our main goal is delivering positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in getting back to what they love most. To accomplish this, we employ every possible tool that can help our patients in Flint Hill, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Flint Hill, MO, our expert 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 interprets that complicated data into helpful information that your physical therapist can analyze
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more detailed analysis and breakdown of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist incorporates these insights with their professional observations to prescribe effective, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly monitored over time and evaluated against the average population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Flint Hill, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to delivering our Flint Hill, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that align with their daily lives and objectives. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your individualized treatment plan:

• To get started, ask your doctor if gait analysis might be advantageous for you, or come to any Axes’ location for a no-risk, no-obligation injury screening.
• We’ll perform a comprehensive history taking and physical examination to gain insight into your goals, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll create a team with you and your doctor, including the results of gait analysis into your comprehensive treatment approach, improving your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll design personalized treatment plans incorporating methodologies that have been proven through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
• In addition to providing physical therapy exercises, we’ll assist you in picking proper footwear, braces, or alternative devices, while educating you on maintaining proper posture and improving movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll utilize gait analysis, together with other quantitative data and markers, to continuously review your growth and adjust your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes offers far more than just a series of exercises to check off. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and advanced technologies at our fingertips, Axes provides a specialized team of physical therapists in Flint Hill, MO who are motivated to provide optimal results in your treatment.

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

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can greatly improve your overall well-being and movement health, regardless of whether that means gliding down the field or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to offering personalized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are among the few clinics in the Flint Hill, MO area that provide video motion analysis. If you want to optimize your movement health, call the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Flint Hill, MO is right for you.