Gait

• Spastic: Stiff-legged, circumduction (unilateral) or scissoring (bilateral).
  • Lesion: UMN (Stroke, Cerebral Palsy).
• Ataxic (Cerebellar): Wide-based, staggering, “drunken.” Unsteady with eyes open or closed.
  • Lesion: Cerebellum (Chronic alcohol use, Stroke).
• Sensory Ataxia: High-steppage, “foot-slapping.” Unsteady only with eyes closed (+ Romberg).
  • Lesion: Dorsal columns (Tabes dorsalis, B12 deficiency).
• Parkinsonian (Festinating): Shuffling, stooped posture, ↓ arm swing, “en bloc” turns.
  • Lesion: Basal ganglia (Parkinson’s disease).
• Waddling (Myopathic): Pelvis drops on non-weight-bearing side (+ Trendelenburg).
  • Lesion: Hip girdle weakness (Muscular Dystrophy).
• Apraxic (Magnetic): Feet “glued to the floor,” difficulty initiating.
  • Lesion: Frontal lobe (Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus).
• Choreiform (Hyperkinetic): “Dancing” gait with superimposed jerky, involuntary movements.
  • Lesion: Basal ganglia (Huntington’s disease).