Gait Analysis & Bio Mechanical Health Assessments

If you have pain in the feet, knees, hips, or lower back then you would benefit from a biomechanical assessment.

So What is Gait Analysis?

Our gait is simply the way in which we move our whole body from one point to another. Gait analysis is a method we use to assess the way our patients walk or run, helping us to assess if there are any biomechanical abnormalities present.

Having the ability to move efficiently and having a “good”, “normal”, “neutral”, or “fluid”, gait is important in avoiding injuries. It is crucial to have joints capable of providing good quality and direction of movement, as well as having muscles capable of producing sufficient force to generate an efficient gait cycle.

If a joint is stiff, whether due to trauma, tight muscles, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, or indeed any other condition that affects the joints, then the body must find ways of compensating for the problem. This compensation can ultimately lead to biomechanical deformities.

So what happens in the clinic?

Gait analysis usually involves walking or running along a long corridor where the podiatrist will be observing the feet, knees, hips, spine, and shoulders, all the way up to the position of the head. Gait analysis is useful to all people and sometimes a change in footwear will be enough to aid in injury prevention, but it’s not until we analyse your gait that we can analyse the source of the issue.

Types of injuries that are associated with poor gait biomechanics:

1. Shin splints
2. Planter fasciitis
3. Runners knee
4. Jumpers knee
5. Patella-femoral knee pain
6. Achilles tendonitis
7. Lower back pain

Our findings from gait analysis may indicate that you would benefit from an orthotic, also known as an insole or a shoe insert.

So what is an Orthotic?

Ortho originates from the Greek which means to “straighten” or “align”. Orthotics are placed in shoes and are engineered to eliminate discomfort, making standing, walking and running more comfortable and efficient. They are designed to control foot functions by correcting walking imbalances known as biomechanical abnormalities in your foot and ankle. You can find out more about our manufacturing of orthotics here.