Advanced Gait Analysis for Dynamic Foot Assessment

A gait lab is a walk biomechanics analysis facility that has specialized equipment for performing gait analysis, in particular, gait labs have cutting edge technology such as force plates within the walkways, high-speed cameras alongside motion capture software, and pressure-sensitive insoles for collecting dynamic data. While walking or running in a gait lab, the subjects’ limbs’ kinematics, muscle activation, and relative amount of pressure are measured and recorded. This information is analyzed using biomechanical software to automatically provide detailed reports regarding gait effectiveness, the likelihood of injury occurrence, and corrective actions. Gait labs are applied for scholarly purposes, for example, studying human motion, operating a multidisciplinary diagnostic center for the clinical investigation of complex gait disorders, and in sports performance centers for optimizing athlete training activities. The controlled setting of a gait lab allows obtaining accurate and repeatable measurements, thus it is regarded as a gold standard for the biomechanical assessment of varying conditions.