What is Trendelenburg Gait? Best Exercises To Fix It

Trendelenburg Gait is one such condition in which walking becomes a challenging task. Walking which seems more like an effortless activity, that any of us can easily perform without giving any thought to it. However, there are individuals who find even walking a difficult task. This could be due to the condition known as Trendelenburg Gait.

The reason behind this could be your weak hip abductor muscles. If your glutes are weak then it is possible that your legs are not able to keep up with your body weight which in turn makes you walk with a side-to-side motion. To the common eye it would look as if you have missed a step or limping.

In this article, we will discuss about Trendelenburg Gait, its causes, how to identify it, treatment, and exercises to fix it.

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What are the Causes of Trendelenburg Gait?

Weakness in hip muscles can cause trendelenburg's gait (Image by user18526052 on Freepik)

Trendelenburg Gait is basically caused due to weak hip abductor muscles. Now these muscles have a huge role in providing much-needed stability during your walks, any anomaly in it can be troublesome. The reasons for which these muscles may be weakened include:

Overexertion:

During any sort of physical activity, one might overexert their hip muscles Especially in exercises which include strengthening the glutes. However, after some time the pain will fade as the muscle inflammation fades.

Hip Surgery:

Another reason behind this could be due to hip surgery, during surgery there are incisions that are required which makes the muscle weak, causing gait.

Nerve Damage:

Trendelenburg Gait can be caused due to nerve damage in your hip muscles, which contributes to weakened hip muscles.

Osteoarthritis:

This is a condition in which the protective cartilage that cushions the joint starts to wear off with time, affecting the hip functionality and making you prone to Gait.

Polio:

Poliovirus can weaken your muscles, making it another contributing factor in this.

Muscular Dystrophy:

A degenerative condition where muscles and bones weaken over time.

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Symptoms of Trendelenburg Gait

While the primitive symptom is the limping and the side-to-side motion. When one leg is moving forward the hip on the opposite side moves outward and drops down a bit. While walking if you are leaning back to maintain balance could be another sign of it.

If you have to lift your foot higher with each step in order to maintain balance, visible uneven pelvis movement can also be the reason behind Gait.

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Diagnosis And Treatment

Physiotherapy can help in straightening the abductor hip muscles (Image by stefamerpik on Freepik)

Diagnosis for the same involves a basic examination of the walking patterns of the individual. In addition to this X-ray of the hip joint facilitates in diagnosing the Gait.

Various treatments that can be preferred for this condition can be:

1. The very basic physical therapy, in which the primary focus is on the hip muscles. In order to assist in gaining control over the gait.
2. Another technique based on electromyography sensors can help in gaining conscious control over muscles during walks.
3. For pain, anti-inflammatory drugs can be consumed.

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Exercises to Gain Better Control Over your Hip Muscles

Exercises should be performed only after consulting your health advisor (Image by Freepik)

Here are some of the exercises that can help you straighten your abductor muscles:

1. Lying on the side and then extending your legs straight out.
2. Another good exercise for this can be, lying down and then raising your legs alternatively, one over the other simultaneously.
3. Stepping up on elevated steps sideways can help you straighten those muscles.

These exercises should be performed under the supervision of some health expert, performing these without consent might be risky.

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It is better to understand the symptoms and take action against them before its too late. If not treated early, there can be many complications later on which may include paralysis of the bottom part, death of bone tissue, and loss of mobility.

With appropriate treatment, one can get affirmations and live a better life. If you are going through it, it is better to seek medical attention.