Gait analysis in Knob Lick, MO. Gait analysis, alongside video motion analysis, is a method used by physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners to assess your movement to offer better care and return you to the things you like doing most. Whether you’re an athlete healing from an injury or you’re trying to handle arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed treatment plan that’s tailored to your lifestyle and goals.

Your Knob Lick, MO physical therapist can use gait analysis to:

• Identify and manage gait disorders
• Discover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that causes pain or impacts movement health
• Evaluate and monitor treatment outcomes
• Prevent and rehabilitate injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Choose footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Knob Lick, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. If you’re wondering if gait analysis would be beneficial for you, call the Axes’ location closest to you or make an appointment through our website 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 result of a multitude 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 Knob Lick, 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 Knob Lick, MO physical therapist can customize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Knob Lick, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a healing method by itself, it offers valuable 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 Knob Lick, MO:

• Athletes searching for a competitive advantage — Correct form becomes crucial at the highest level of sports. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address muscle imbalances and range of motion limitations, 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 track how your recovery’s going and ensure that your body is recuperating and gaining strength appropriately.
• Anyone else recovering from injury — Whether you were injured at work, in a slip and fall, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to experience advantages from gait analysis in assisting your recuperation from trauma.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re an experienced veteran, gait analysis can help you in finding the suitable footwear, which, along with additional insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, conserve energy, and reduce the probability of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can significantly disrupt your movement health, along with 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 support you in adjusting to your new device and optimizing its function and comfort.
• People suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can greatly impact our day-to-day functioning and mobility health. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to monitor disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and guide rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally weaken as we age. This may lead to an heightened risk of falling for older adults, along with degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can provide assistance in identifying ways to relieve pressure on sore joints, mitigate injury risks, and evaluate the cognitive and motor elements of movement health.

No matter the reason you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s working to eventually run that marathon or simply engage in your day-to-day life without discomfort, Axes’ licensed therapists in Knob Lick, MO will utilize gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and assist you in getting back to the activities you enjoy.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are typically 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 broad assessment of your movement health and readily spot any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the clinical expertise of the therapist to reach conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs specific technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to deliver objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By using precise numerical values, it allows more in-depth analysis and monitoring of your improvement over time.

Both qualitative and instrument-assisted gait analysis are appropriate in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Knob Lick, MO possesses the ability and expertise to customize our gait analysis services to meet your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Knob Lick, MO

At Axes, our main goal is achieving positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in getting back to what they love most. To accomplish this, we make use of every possible tool that can help our patients in Knob Lick, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Knob Lick, MO, our experienced physical therapists utilize innovative DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer combined qualitative and quantitative services.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are positioned on your body that record your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software converts that algorithmic information into helpful information that your physical therapist can analyze
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more comprehensive analysis and breakdown of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist incorporates these insights with their clinical observations to prescribe effective, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly monitored over time and compared against the typical population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Knob Lick, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is dedicated to delivering our Knob Lick, MO patients with effective, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that align with their lifestyles and objectives. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your personalized treatment plan:

• To start the process, ask your doctor if gait analysis could be advantageous for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a free injury screening.
• We’ll carry out a comprehensive patient interview and physical examination to understand your objectives, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll form a team with you and your doctor, incorporating the insights from gait analysis into your comprehensive treatment approach, improving your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll develop personalized treatment plans incorporating methodologies that have been validated through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their efficacy.
• In addition to providing physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in picking proper footwear, braces, or other devices, while educating you on maintaining proper posture and optimizing movement health, utilizing insights obtained from gait analysis.
• We’ll utilize gait analysis, alongside other quantitative information and indicators, to consistently review your growth and adjust your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes provides 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 dedicated team of physical therapists in Knob Lick, MO who are motivated to deliver the best results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Knob Lick, 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 Knob Lick, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can greatly enhance your overall health and performance, whether that means flying down the field or going up stairs without discomfort. As we are dedicated to providing personalized, evidence-based treatment plans, we are among the limited number of clinics in the Knob Lick, MO area that offer 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 Knob Lick, MO is right for you.