Detecting the presence of leg length discrepancy based on gait deviations and functional measurement of leg length during walking

Leg length discrepancy (LLD) is associated with many musculoskeletal disorders. Its clinical significance is unclear mainly due to limited functional measurement capacity. An integrated approach measuring true LLD, gait deviations and functional leg length during the gait cycle, based on location of joint centre and anatomical landmarks using a three-dimensional motion analysis system was performed on two patients. In one case, strong agreement was found between all measurements thus, leading to the same treatment intervention. However, in another case, true LLD was not correlated with functional LLD or gait deviations, which led to contradictory results. Functional LLD was found to be correlated with gait deviations in both cases. Our results indicate the effectiveness of integrating into the diagnostic regimen, a dynamic method of measuring LLD, together with the functional outcome of gait deviations as a basis for decision-making regarding the presence and clinical significance of LLD in musculoskeletal disorders.

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