Stance Phase
The portion of the gait cycle during which the foot is in contact with the ground, accounting for approximately 60% of the full cycle.
Full Definition
The stance phase is divided into sub-phases—initial contact, loading response, midstance, terminal stance, and pre-swing—and is the segment of gait most directly influenced by the functional properties of a lower-limb orthosis. In orthotics documentation, editors will encounter stance phase in biomechanical evaluations, gait analysis reports, and outcome studies. It must be distinguished from the swing phase, which occupies the remaining 40% of the cycle. Precise use of sub-phase terminology is expected in advanced clinical documents.
Usage
Usage note: Always two words; do not hyphenate. Capitalise sub-phase names only when they are used as proper labels in tables or figures.
In Context
- "The kinematic data showed excessive knee hyperextension during the midstance sub-phase of the stance phase." — Gait analysis report
- "Ensure 'stance phase' and 'swing phase' are not transposed in the methods section of the study protocol." — Research manuscript editorial review