BRINGING GAIT ANALYSIS OUT OF THE LABORATORY AND INTO THE CLINIC

• Published in: Age and ageing Vol. 17; no. 6; pp. 397 - 400
• Main Authors: KLENERMAN, L., DOSES, R. J., WELLER, C., LEEMAN, A. L., NICHOLSON, P. W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Oxford University Press 01.11.1988
• Subjects: Accidental Falls; Accidents; Aged; Female; Gait; Humans; Male; Movement Disorders - diagnosis; Parkinson Disease - diagnosis; Postural Balance
• ISSN: 0002-0729; 1468-2834
• DOI: 10.1093/ageing/17.6.397

The potential value of objective assessment of gait in geriatric medicine cannot be explored fully whilst gait analysis remains a laboratory research tool, imposing special conditions which often preclude its use in the elderly. We describe a method of gait analysis suitable for the geriatric clinic and illustrate its use in documenting the response to interventions in three patients presenting with falls due to parkinsonism. Irregularity between gait cycles was noted, a finding previously described in Parkinson's disease, dementia and normal old men at a fast walking speed. Such irregularity may prove to be a major risk factor for falls. Where multiple pathologies which disturb gait coexist, measurement of changes in gait in response to treatment may provide a much needed means of audit.