Gait analysis in Gilmore, MO. Gait analysis, alongside video motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners can evaluate 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 manage chronic pain, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed plan of care that’s tailored to your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Diagnose and treat gait disorders
• Uncover 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
• Find footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Gilmore, 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 is right for you, call the Axes’ location closest to you or request an appointment through our website to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When done by credentialed 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 progress of injury rehabilitation, 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 what may be affecting your movement health.

In a gait analysis appointment, your Axes physical therapist in Gilmore, 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 accurate understanding of your gait, your Gilmore, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Gilmore, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a therapy in and of itself, it provides valuable data to your physical therapist about your movement health, allowing them to offer more focused and personalized care. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Gilmore, MO:

• Athletes looking for a competitive edge — Proper form becomes vital at the highest level of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address muscle imbalances and limited range of motion, and prevent injury.
• Athletes healing 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 verify that your body is recuperating and building strength adequately.
• Others recovering from injury — Whether you were injured on the job, involved in a car accident, or underwent recent surgery, you don’t have to be an athlete to gain benefits from gait analysis in aiding your healing from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re an experienced runner, gait analysis can help you in finding the right footwear, which, coupled with other insights from gait analysis, can boost your speed, conserve energy, and minimize the chance of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can drastically disrupt your movement health, as well as resulting in phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices customized to your body and lifestyle. It can furthermore support you in adjusting to your new device and maximizing its performance and comfort.
• Those suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can greatly impact our daily lives and mobility health. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to track disease progression, evaluate treatment effectiveness, and guide rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally lose strength as we age. This may lead to an heightened risk of falling for older adults, in addition to degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can offer support in discovering ways to lessen pressure on painful joints, mitigate injury risks, and evaluate the cognitive and motor elements of movement health.

Regardless of why you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s aiming to eventually run that marathon or just engage in your daily life without discomfort, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Gilmore, MO will employ gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in returning 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 approach entails a physical therapist personally watching your gait in real time and through video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to acquire a overall overview of your movement health and easily spot any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the professional judgment of the therapist to make assessments.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this method employs specialized technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to deliver objective, measurable data about your gait. By using precise numerical values, it allows greater thorough analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both clinical and instrument-assisted gait analysis are appropriate in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Gilmore, MO has the ability and expertise to personalize our gait analysis services to fulfill your specific needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Gilmore, MO

At Axes, our primary objective is achieving positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in returning to what they love most. To accomplish this, we employ every available tool to support our patients in Gilmore, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Gilmore, MO, our expert physical therapists utilize cutting-edge DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer both 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 analyze
• During playback, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more thorough analysis and breakdown of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist incorporates these insights with their professional observations to prescribe efficient, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is continuously monitored over time and compared against the average population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Gilmore, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is dedicated to providing our Gilmore, MO patients with successful, safe, and scientifically validated treatment plans that fit their daily lives and objectives. Gait analysis can be included in your personalized treatment plan:

• To get started, ask your doctor if gait analysis might be helpful for you, or come to any Axes’ location for a complimentary injury screening.
• We’ll conduct a detailed history taking and physical examination to gain insight into your objectives, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll build a partnership with you and your doctor, integrating the insights from gait analysis into your all-encompassing treatment approach, improving your movement health, and promoting overall wellness.
• We’ll design personalized treatment plans incorporating methodologies that have been validated through research and scholarly studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in selecting proper footwear, braces, or other devices, while informing you on maintaining proper posture and optimizing movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll utilize gait analysis, alongside other quantitative information and markers, to consistently review your growth and adjust your treatment plan as necessary.

Axes offers a lot more than simply a series of exercises to tick off. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and advanced technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a dedicated team of physical therapists in Gilmore, MO who are driven to deliver the best results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Gilmore, 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 Gilmore, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can significantly enhance your overall health and performance, regardless of whether that involves moving down the court or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to providing individualized treatment plans that are proven to work, we are one of the limited number of clinics in the Gilmore, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to enhance your movement health, get in touch with the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Gilmore, MO is suitable for you.