Gait Analysis in Normal and Spinal Contused Mice Using the TreadScan System

This study compares the gait of normal and contusion-injured mice using the TreadScan system, which utilizes a transparent treadmill belt and a high-speed camera to capture the footprints of animals and automatically analyze gait characteristics. Adult female mice were introduced to the treadmill prior to receiving either a standardized mild, moderate, or sham contusion spinal cord injury, and TreadScan gait analyses were performed weekly for 10 weeks and compared with scores on the Basso Mouse Scale (BMS). The TreadScan system is a highly sensitive and objective measure for assessing deficits in mild-to-moderate SCI, and the automated data acquisition of TreadScan allows for fast and accurate throughput gait analysis.

• 1
  The TreadScan software successfully differentiates sham animals from injured animals on a number of gait characteristics, including hindlimb swing time, stride length, toe spread, and track width.
• 2
  Differences were found between mild and moderate contusion injuries, indicating a high degree of sensitivity within the system.
• 3
  Rear track width, a measure of the animal’s hindlimb base of support, correlated strongly both with spared white matter percentage and with terminal BMS.