The OptoGait System
Original Editor - Areeba Raja
Top Contributors - Angeliki Chorti and Areeba Raja
Introduction
OptoGait (Microgate, Bolzano, Italy) is a medical device used for gait and functional movement analysis. Patterns of spatiotemporal gait can be analysed for the following 19 variables: step length, stride length, distance, total contact time, step time, walking speed, acceleration, progressive step time, cadence, gait cycle, stance phase, swing phase, heel contact phase, flatfoot phase, takeoff phase, single limb support, double limb support, load response phase, and pre-swing phase. [1] A floor-based photocell (optical) system uses visual data for monitoring of the condition.The data are stored through a software platform and can be recalled when necessary allowing for clinical assessments (i.e. analysis, comparisons at different time frames) and development of customised patient treatment plans as well as research investigations. [2][3]
An example of how the software can be used for movement analysis can be found in the following video.
Equipment
OptoGait assesses spatiotemporal parameters for gait, and other movement activities by using optical sensors at a frequency of 1000 Hz. The device is reported to have accuracy of 1 cm. [2]
Evidence
Validity
Discriminant and concurrent (criterion-related) validity of OptoGait with a validated electronic walkway has been assessed for spatiotemporal gait parameters at different velocities by Lienhard et al.[5] in 15 patients (mean age±standard deviation: 65±7 years) with total knee arthroplasty and 15 healthy matched controls. Although detection of differences in walking parameters between patients and controls was similar between the two devices with Intraclass Correlation Coefficients ranging between 0.933 (swing time) and 0.999 (cycle time, cadence and walking speed), the authors were cautious about using these two instruments interchangeably.[5]
Reliability
The reliability and repeatability of walking parameters of healthy adults using the OptoGait motion analysis device has been assessed in several studies. Overall, OptoGait was reported as reliable and obtained data were suggested to serve as a baseline for future studies. [1] [6] However, acceleration and progressive step time assessment were not captured satisfactorily by the device and therefore, these parameters should not be evaluated in gait analyses. [1]
Comparisons with Other Gait Analysis Systems
Agreement and consistency in spatiotemporal gait parameters among five clinical gait analysis systems (including OptoGait) using different sensor technologies have been assessed by Rudisch et al. [7] All systems demonstrated high agreement and consistency for basic spatiotemporal parameters, in contrast to relative phase parameters that showed lower agreement and consistency rates. Overground measurement agreement in OptoGait & GAITRite was higher than inertial sensor-based systems. [7] This may be explainable considering another study[3]that showed high levels of correlation between OptoGait & GAITRite (intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC (2, 1) = 0.929–0.998), coefficients of variation (CVME = 0.32–11.30%).
Another study has compared two systems but found that these cannot be used interchangeably. [8]
Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Gomez Bernal A, Becerro-de-Bengoa-Vallejo R, Losa-Iglesias ME. Reliability of the OptoGait portable photoelectric cell system for the quantification of spatial-temporal parameters of gait in young adults. Gait Posture. 2016 Oct;50:196-200.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Microgate. Optogait. Available from: https://medical.microgate.it/en/products/optogait [accessed 24/4/2025]
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lee MM, Song CH, Lee KJ, Jung SW, Shin DC, Shin SH. Concurrent Validity and Test-retest Reliability of the OPTOGait Photoelectric Cell System for the Assessment of Spatio-temporal Parameters of the Gait of Young Adults. J Phys Ther Sci. 2014 Jan;26(1):81-5.
- ↑ Microgate. OptoGait Software for Video, Gait Analysis and Movement. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIxI7Z2oNI4 [accessed 24/4/2025]
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lienhard K, Schneider D, Maffiuletti NA. Validity of the Optogait photoelectric system for the assessment of spatiotemporal gait parameters. Med Eng Phys. 2013 Apr;35(4):500-4.
- ↑ Carbajales-Lopez J, Becerro-de-Bengoa-Vallejo R, Losa-Iglesias ME, Casado-Hernández I, Benito-De Pedro M, Rodríguez-Sanz D, Calvo-Lobo C, San Antolín M. The OptoGait Motion Analysis System for Clinical Assessment of 2D Spatio-Temporal Gait Parameters in Young Adults: A Reliability and Repeatability Observational Study. Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(11): 3726.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Rudisch J, Jöllenbeck T, Vogt L, Cordes T, Klotzbier TJ, Vogel O, Wollesen B. Agreement and consistency of five different clinical gait analysis systems in the assessment of spatiotemporal gait parameters. Gait Posture. 2021 Mar;85:55-64.
- ↑ Núñez-Trull A, Alvarez-Medina J, Jaén-Carrillo D, Roche-Seruendo LE, Gómez-Trullén E. Absolute agreement and consistency of the OptoGait system and Freemed platform for measuring walking gait. Med Eng Phys. 2022 Dec;110:103912.