Gait Analysis: Introduction

This lecture covers the introduction to gait analysis, including its origin, disorders, and objectives. It discusses evaluation methods, historical perspectives, horse gait analysis, instrumentation, and locomotion disorders. The importance of gait analysis in diagnosing diseases, measuring functional performance, and screening for fall risks is highlighted. Different methods of gait analysis, including observational and quantitative approaches, are explained. The lecture also delves into the evaluation of locomotion through subjective and objective tests, as well as the analysis of kinematics, kinetics, and electromyography. Various kinematic and spatio-temporal features observed during gait events are discussed, along with the significance of quantitative gait analysis in assessing length, duration, angles, positions, forces, joint moments, and muscle activations.