Gait analysis in Park Hills, 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 care and return you to the activities you love. Whether you’re an athlete recovering from an injury or you’re trying to handle arthritis, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed plan of care that’s tailored to your lifestyle and goals.

Your Park Hills, MO physical therapist can use gait analysis to:

• Identify and manage gait disorders
• Find out underlying musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that leads to pain or impacts movement health
• Assess and track treatment outcomes
• Prevent and recover from injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Choose footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Park Hills, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. If you’re curious if gait analysis can help you, call the Axes’ location most convenient for you or request an appointment through our website to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When carried out by licensed 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 status 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 Park Hills, 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 exact understanding of your gait, your Park Hills, MO physical therapist can personalize your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Park Hills, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment in and of itself, it offers essential insights to your physical therapist about your mobility, allowing them to offer more focused and customized care. As such, gait analysis can benefit a wide range of people in Park Hills, MO:

• Athletes searching for a performance boost — Proper form becomes increasingly important at the peak of athletic competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address strength imbalances and limited range of motion, and prevent injury.
• Athletes recovering from injury — If you’re coming off an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to track your progress and confirm that your body is recuperating and developing 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 gain benefits from gait analysis in facilitating your healing from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned runner, gait analysis can help you in finding the appropriate footwear, which, coupled with other insights from gait analysis, can boost your speed, preserve energy, and minimize the chance of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can greatly interrupt your mobility health, along with 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 adapting to your new device and maximizing its function and convenience.
• Those suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and other conditions can significantly impact our everyday lives and movement health. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to observe disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and direct rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies inherently weaken as we age. This may lead to an elevated risk of falling for older adults, as well as degenerative conditions like tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can be beneficial in finding ways to alleviate pressure on painful joints, reduce injury risks, and evaluate the cognitive and motor elements of mobility health.

Regardless of why you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s aiming to ultimately run that marathon or simply engage in your day-to-day life without discomfort, Axes’ licensed therapists in Park Hills, MO will apply gait analysis to customize your treatment, maximize your care, and help you in returning to the pursuits you enjoy.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are generally two major types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this approach entails a physical therapist directly watching your gait as you walk and via video recordings. It allows the physical therapist to acquire a general overview of your movement health and readily identify any noticeable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the professional judgment of the therapist to reach conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this method employs advanced technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, quantifiable data regarding your gait. By using precise numerical values, it enables more in-depth analysis and tracking of your progress over a period of time.

Both clinical and quantitative gait analysis are suitable in the right circumstances and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Park Hills, MO possesses the capacity and expertise to personalize our gait analysis services to address your particular needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Park Hills, MO

At Axes, our primary focus is delivering positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in returning to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we make use of every available tool to support our patients in Park Hills, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Park Hills, MO, our experienced physical therapists employ advanced DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer both 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 translates that complex data into valuable information that your physical therapist can examine
• During video replay, your movements are slowed down to aid a more thorough analysis and examination of your motion
• Your Axes’ physical therapist combines these insights with their professional observations to prescribe efficient, evidence-based treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly monitored over time and compared against the normal population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Park Hills, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is committed to offering our Park Hills, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that fit their daily lives and goals. Gait analysis can be part of your personalized treatment plan:

• To begin the process, ask your doctor if gait analysis might be helpful for you, or come to any Axes’ location for a free injury screening.
• We’ll carry out a comprehensive history taking and physical examination to understand your goals, preferences, and health background.
• We’ll create a partnership with you and your doctor, incorporating the findings of gait analysis into your holistic treatment approach, optimizing your movement health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll develop personalized treatment plans incorporating methodologies that have been confirmed through research and peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll assist you in picking suitable footwear, braces, or other devices, while informing you on maintaining proper posture and improving movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll employ gait analysis, alongside other quantitative data and indicators, to consistently evaluate your progress and adjust your treatment plan accordingly.

Axes provides far more than just a series of exercises to tick off. With decades of combined experience, clinical expertise, and state-of-the-art technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a committed team of physical therapists in Park Hills, MO who are determined to deliver excellent results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Park Hills, 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 Park Hills, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can positively enhance your overall health and movement health, whether that involves gliding down the field or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to providing customized treatment plans that are proven to work, we’re the few clinics in the Park Hills, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to improve your movement health, reach out to the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Park Hills, MO is right for you.