Gait analysis in Potosi, MO. Gait analysis, alongside video motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners can assess your movement to offer better 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 personalized for your lifestyle and goals.

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

• Diagnose and treat gait disorders
• Uncover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve dysfunction that causes 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 Potosi, MO, our staff of physical therapists base our practice on one thing: positive patient outcomes. If you’re curious if gait analysis is right for you, call the Axes’ location nearest you or schedule an appointment through our website to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When performed 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 status of injury recovery, and more. Because our gaits our the product 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 Potosi, 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 Potosi, MO physical therapist can tailor your treatment and help you get back to the things you love most.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Potosi, MO

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

• Athletes searching for a competitive advantage — Correct form becomes essential at the peak of competition. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, address strength imbalances and range of motion limitations, and prevent injury.
• Athletes healing from injury — If you’re coming back from an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to monitor how your recovery’s going and ensure that your body is healing and building strength appropriately.
• 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 positives from gait analysis in facilitating your recuperation from trauma.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re an experienced vet, gait analysis can help you in finding the suitable footwear, which, together with further insights from gait analysis, can improve your speed, conserve energy, and minimize the chance of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can greatly interrupt your movement health, as well as causing phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices tailored to your body and lifestyle. It can furthermore help you in adapting to your new device and optimizing its function and convenience.
• Those suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can significantly affect our everyday lives and mobility health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to observe disease progression, assess treatment effectiveness, and guide rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally weaken as we age. This can result in an heightened risk of falling for older adults, as well as degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can provide assistance in identifying ways to alleviate pressure on aching joints, mitigate injury risks, and evaluate the cognitive and motor aspects of mobility health.

No matter why you’re seeking out physical therapy, whether it’s aiming to eventually run that marathon or simply enjoy your daily life without pain, Axes’ licensed therapists in Potosi, MO will employ 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 major types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this method entails a physical therapist personally observing your gait as you walk and through video recordings. It enables the physical therapist to obtain a broad assessment of your movement health and readily identify any apparent patterns. Qualitative gait analysis depends on 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 utilizing precise numerical values, it allows more in-depth analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both qualitative and instrument-assisted gait analysis are appropriate in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Potosi, MO has the capacity and expertise to tailor our gait analysis services to address your individual needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Potosi, MO

At Axes, our main focus is delivering positive patient outcomes and assisting individuals in returning to their cherished activities. To accomplish this, we make use of every possible tool to support our patients in Potosi, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Potosi, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists employ innovative DorsaVi video motion analysis to provide both qualitative and quantitative services.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are attached to your body that monitor your motion, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software interprets that hard data into helpful information that your physical therapist can analyze
• During playback, your movements are slowed down to facilitate a more detailed analysis and breakdown of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist integrates these insights with their professional observations to recommend effective, proven treatment modalities
• Your progress is regularly tracked over time and evaluated against the typical population as well as your prior sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Potosi, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is dedicated to providing our Potosi, MO patients with successful, safe, and evidence-backed treatment plans that fit their lifestyles and objectives. Gait analysis can be included in your individualized treatment plan:

• To begin the process, consult your doctor to assess if gait analysis might be beneficial for you, or come to any Axes’ location for a free injury screening.
• We’ll perform a detailed patient interview and assessment to understand your objectives, preferences, and health background.
• We’ll build a team with you and your doctor, integrating the results of 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 peer-reviewed studies, ensuring their effectiveness.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in selecting appropriate footwear, braces, or alternative devices, while educating you on achieving proper posture and optimizing movement health, drawing on insights gained from gait analysis.
• We’ll use gait analysis, alongside other measurable data and indicators, to consistently assess your progress and adapt your treatment plan as necessary.

Axes delivers far more than just a series of exercises to check off. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and advanced technologies at our disposal, Axes provides a dedicated team of physical therapists in Potosi, MO who are motivated to deliver optimal results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Potosi, 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 Potosi, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can positively contribute to your overall health and performance, whether that means flying down the field or climbing stairs without pain. As we are committed to offering personalized treatment plans that are proven to work, we are one of the few clinics in the Potosi, MO area that provide video motion analysis. If you want to enhance your movement health, reach out to the nearest Axes location or contact us online to ascertain if gait analysis in Potosi, MO is right for you.