Services Available (starting January 5, 2010):

1. Clinical Gait Analysis ($400 for Full Clinical Gait Analysis)

We have dramatically improved our Gait Analysis process making it much more scientific and streamlined. Thus, all measurements, analyses, and report generation will be done over a one-time, two-hour visit. No follow-up appointment to go over the report is necessary.

The Clinical Gait Analysis involves a comprehensive 3-dimensional analysis of your running and/or walking biomechanics and how your atypical mechanics are related to your anatomical structure, muscle flexibility, and strength.

We utilize our 8-camera Vicon motion capture system (www.vicon.com) and take scientific measures of strength, flexibility, and structure. A comprehensive and individualized Gait Analysis Report is generated within the first 90 minutes. Specific recommendations are made to help resolve your pain and symptoms.

Recommendations are typically made in the following areas:

1. Therapeutic intervention for strengthening and/or increasing muscle flexibility.
2. Gait mechanics can be altered to change the way you walk and run.
3. Orthotics or shoe inserts which control unwanted movement.
4. Footwear to optimize your performance.

A team of four scientists and practitioners are involved in the Clinical Gait Analysis:

1. Dr. Reed Ferber: The Director of the Clinic who is a certified athletic therapist and holds a PhD in gait biomechanics
2. Lindsay MacNeil: a certified athletic therapist who is our Clinical Director and pursuing her Masters degree
3. Chandra Lloyd: our Research Technician who holds a Masters of Science in Biomechanics
4. Jill Baxter: a certified athletic therapist who is our Research Coordinator.

2. Running Injury Evaluation ($125 for Running Injury Evaluation)

Through our research, several clinical and mechanical factors have been identified which primarily contribute to the development of injuries.

This is an evaluation for runners of all levels to determine the cause of your running injuries through scientific measurement of specific clinical and biomechanical factors.

Specific individual recommendations are provided.

3. Biomechanical Analysis ($200 for Biomechanical Analysis)

This service was developed to help other clinicians and therapists with your injury evaluation. We provide a state-of-the-art scientific biomechanical report of your running gait biomechanics. This report gives your clinician the most scientific and accurate assessment of your gait mechanics and is to be combined with their clinical expertise. A referral from your current therapist is needed for this service.

Service includes:

1. Scientific assessment
2. Comprehensive final report

This cost includes:

1) Scientific assessment
2) Comprehensive final report
3) Specific recommendations to resolve your injury (all completed in a one-time, two-hour visit)

The cost of the Running Injury Evaluation is $125.

This cost includes:

1) One hour scientific assessment
2) Specific individual recommendations

The cost of the Biomechanical Analysis is $200.

This cost includes:

1) Scientific assessment
2) Comprehensive report of gait biomechanics

These services are available at The University of Calgary. To book an appointment, click here.

If you have any questions contact Dr. Ferber at rferber@ucalgary.ca.

A gait analysis involves videotaping you while you walk and/or run to scientifically determine excessive or atypical movement patterns. Videotaping is done from the front, side, and rear to obtain a complete view of how you walk and run (your gait mechanics). The information from this is combined with your clinical assessment to provide a comprehensive analysis of your walking and running mechanics.

Most clinics utilize a single camera or perhaps two cameras to perform a 2-dimensional analysis. In this fashion, many aspects of your running mechanics cannot be analyzed accurately as our own research has shown (Ferber et al., 2009; ISMJ 10(3), 152-161). We utilize our state-of-the-art, Vicon camera system to accurately measure your movement patterns in all 3 dimensions of movement (flex/extension, abd/adduction, and rotations) for the ankle, knee and hip joints.

You will be provided with a detailed report and specific recommendations to help you prevent injuries from occurring or to rehabilitate fromyour injury. You will also receive copies of your gait mechanics to help you visualize and understand the way you run and walk. This report can then be reviewed and implemented by yourself and your therapist.

This is a unique service that involves a clinical and scientific analysis of your gait mechanics. Dr. Ferber is a certified Athletic Therapist and has a PhD in gait biomechanics and sports medicine. He has also been researching how gait mechanics can influence lower extremity injuries for over 9 years.

NO! Pain while running is directly related to poor gait mechanics and muscle imbalances and is a strong indicator of a potential injury. This specialized service is designed to properly asses the direct cause of your pain and help you prevent injuries.

Many insurance companies will reimburse for Physiotherapy and Athletic Therapy services. You will be provided a receipt that you can submit for reimbursement.

Absolutely! Many chronic or recurrent injuries are the result of muscle imbalances, muscle weakness, and poor running andwalking mechanics. This service is designed to give you a comprehensive analysis of all these factors and provide solutions.

Most people have pain while doing other sports. It is also known that daily walking and/or running can aggravate these injuries. This service can help you overcome injuries by identifying how your muscle imbalances, structural differences, and gait mechanics are all related.

Many times the way you walk and run is related to muscle weakness and structural imbalances. Injuries commonly reoccur because most people are unaware that the way the walk or run is directly related to these clinical factors.

This service is designed to complement existing therapy. The final report will provide specific recommendations for your therapist to help optimize your treatment.

You should significantly reduce your mileage while your injured. However, by correcting the way you run, you can rehabilitate from your injuries much quicker while continuing to run.

Yes! Dr. Ferber has conducted scientific investigations demonstrating that you can change the way you run with visual and verbal feedback. These changes in your gait mechanics can lead to a resolution of your pain and other symptoms. See Dr. Ferber's CV for a complete overview of his experience and research related to gait mechanics.

Email Dr. Ferber at rferber@ucalgary.ca