Gait is a Fingerprint.  

“Just because you see something you do not like, does not mean that it is wrong. ”

How many times have you heard us say this ! Yes, we are getting tired of saying it, too. But, it is the honest truth.   

The above slide is one that we are using in an upcoming teaching presentation for you folks.  And this slide pretty much tells it like it is.  That being, that gait is a unique and variable fingerprint.  The slide suggests, with references, that gait is so variable, that even people with the same disease process have different presentations miles apart from one another. 

This gait analysis thing is not simple. If you are using a piece of analysis software that has you comparing your patients to normative data, be careful. You are very likely not comparing “apple to apples”.  So, do not pigeon-hole your client to normative data. Do your hands on physical examination and find out where THEIR limitations are, not what the normative data says their capacities should be.  This could be one’s first mistake in trying to help a client.  

Bottom line, no 2 people’s arms swing, leg swing, pelvic posture, hip extension etc are the same. Even side to side on the same client there may be variability due to degrees of long bone torsion or foot type (we have discusses these embryologic issues previously many times here on our blog). So, just try to improve your clients function and stability and mobility to what their body needs.

This is not a templated game. This an art form that takes years to develop. We too are learning and growing, so thanks for being on this journey with us !

Shawn and Ivo, the gait guys