Hollywood Technology Helps Improve Movement
Channel 7 News
Luke Walters-Hooey was born with club feet on both feet, without an ACL on his right knee and his right hip joint never formed, all making it difficult to achieve full range of motion. Luke and his family came to the Gait Center for Movement and Analysis at Children's Hospital Colorado to determine what course of action to take to improve Walters-Hooey’s ability to walk.
The center used the same technology used to capture motions for video games and movies to evaluate the way Walters-Hooey moves, allowing for an accurate analysis.
"I think without it they would have to guess at what they would need to do," said Troy Hooey, Luke’s father. "I know in his case, the data proved kind of the opposite of what just looking at him would have them do."
Now a year after his surgery, Walters-Hooey is living the life of an active 11-year-old boy. He is snowboarding, riding his bike, swimming, and playing soccer.
Motion capture has been used in the field of bio-mechanics for 50+ years, but not until recently has it become so popular thanks to Hollywood discovering its potential in animation.
"There's a lot of cool information and a lot of nice gadgets that we have to collect the data, but they are really just tools and they enable this team to make decisions that are going to help the overall child's well-being," said Dr. James Carollo, the director of the Center for Gait and Movement Analysis.
Read more about the Gait Center for Movement and Analysis and Luke’s story.
