Assessment of Gait

Gait assessment can be performed through a variety of approaches, including subjective tests, disability level assessments, quantitative tests, and gait pattern analyses. To capture the full spectrum of an individual’s gait, a combination of tests from different perspectives is necessary. Quantitative evaluation is essential to confirm the effectiveness of walking training. Gait velocity is one of the most commonly used tests to evaluate gait function, and it is considered the single best measure due to its simplicity, reliability, and lack of time constraints. Observational gait analysis is the most commonly used method to evaluate gait pattern, but it has several limitations, including the time required to acquire skill, poor reliability, difficulty in observing transverse plane movements, and limited sensitivity in detecting changes in gait patterns. However, the future is promising as newly developed technologies could solve these problems.