Clinical-oriented Three-dimensional Gait Analysis Method for Evaluating Gait Disorder.

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Clinical Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Engineering

Background:

• Three-dimensional gait analysis (3DGA) is valuable for assessing gait abnormalities in movement disorders.
• Clinical adoption of 3DGA is limited due to time-consuming processes and complex data presentation.
• Existing methods present challenges for clinicians in understanding gait measurement results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a clinician-friendly 3DGA method for easier clinical implementation.
• To streamline the preparation and measurement phases of 3DGA.
• To enhance the intuitive understanding of gait analysis results for clinicians.

Main Methods:

• Simplified preparation and measurement using minimal markers on a treadmill.
• Intuitive results presentation with a Lissajous overview picture (LOP) for holistic marker trajectory visualization.
• Development of abnormal gait pattern indices standardized with healthy subject data.
• Analysis of toe clearance strategies, differentiating normal and compensatory mechanisms.

Main Results:

• The developed method allows for quick and simplified 3D gait measurements.
• The Lissajous overview picture (LOP) aids in holistic and intuitive understanding of gait patterns.
• Abnormal gait pattern indices effectively quantify gait deviations in stroke patients.
• Toe clearance strategy analysis provides insights into patient gait adaptations.

Conclusions:

• The proposed clinician-friendly 3DGA method facilitates clinical implementation.
• Simplified procedures and intuitive results presentation improve clinician accessibility to 3DGA.
• This approach encourages further development of clinician-centric gait analysis tools.