Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
intrusive, that is to say that they interfere too much with
movement, for the analysis of sporting actions.
1.2.4.
Clinical applications of movement analysis
Currently, walking is by far the most widely studied
activity in clinics. Video is easy to implement routinely in
clinics and makes an initial assessment of walking possible.
However, after visualizing overall walking, in different
planes (front and side), at normal speed or in slow motion, it
is worth carrying out a systematic interpretation of a
representative gait cycle by pausing the image at each
characteristic time (end of swing/initial stance phase, mid-
stance and terminal stance and mid-swing). This analysis,
besides its long processing time, also has the drawback of
remaining qualitative, or even subjective, and therefore
depends on the expertise of the operator.
Tools that are simple to use facilitate an initial objective
assessment by providing access to the spatiotemporal
parameters of walking (e.g. GaitRite® mat), useful in the
functional assessment of certain pathologies, such as
Parkinson's disease [BRA 10], but they are still too limited
for analyzing complex walking problems.
Quantitative gait analysis (QGA) is a full exam, recently
introduced in France in the common classification of medical
procedures. (CCMPs) with the code NKQP003, associated
with the title “three-dimensional analysis gait analysis”.
QGA provides four types of data, associated with the
different measurement systems used: spatiotemporal and
kinematic data (MoCap systems), dynamic data (force
platforms) and electromyography data. The success of this
type of QGA is a full exam has been widely demonstrated
[WRE 11], particularly when determining what surgical
operation is needed in infants suffering from cerebral palsy,
where it has allowed doctors to modify their surgical
