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Gait abnormality is a deviation from normal walking ().Watching a patient walk is an important part of the neurological examination. Normal gait requires that many systems, including strength, sensation and coordination, function in an integrated fashion.
Abnormal gait is a result of one or more of these tracts being disturbed. This can happen developmentally or as the result of neurodegeneration . [ 11 ] The most prominent example of gait irregularities due to developmental problems comes from studies of children on the autism spectrum .
Steppage gait (high stepping, neuropathic gait) is a form of gait abnormality characterised by foot drop or ankle equinus due to loss of dorsiflexion. [1] The foot hangs with the toes pointing down, causing the toes to scrape the ground while walking, requiring someone to lift the leg higher than normal when walking.
As a result of this gait impairment, falling is a concern in patients with ataxia. [3] Truncal ataxia affects the muscles closer to the body such as the trunk, shoulder girdle and hip girdle. It is involved in gait stability. [3] Truncal ataxia is different from appendicular ataxia. Appendicular ataxia affects the movements of the arms and legs.
Gait deviations are nominally referred to as any variation of standard human gait, typically manifesting as a coping mechanism in response to an anatomical impairment. Lower-limb amputees are unable to maintain the characteristic walking patterns of an able-bodied individual due to the removal of some portion of the impaired leg.
A limp is a type of asymmetric abnormality of the gait.Limping may be caused by pain, weakness, neuromuscular imbalance, or a skeletal deformity. The most common underlying cause of a painful limp is physical trauma; however, in the absence of trauma, other serious causes, such as septic arthritis or slipped capital femoral epiphysis, may be present.
Since children are unlikely to suspect or identify flat feet on their own, it is important for adult caregivers to check on this themselves. Besides visual inspection of feet and of the treadwear pattern on shoe soles, caregivers should notice when a child's gait is abnormal, or the child seems to be in pain from walking.
Gait training or gait rehabilitation is the act of learning how to walk, either as a child, or, more frequently, after sustaining an injury or disability.Normal human gait is a complex process, which happens due to co-ordinated movements of the whole of the body, requiring the whole of Central Nervous System - the brain and spinal cord, to function properly.