Cerebral Palsy Spasticity

Cerebral Palsy Spasticity At A Glance

One of types of cerebral palsy is cerebral palsy spasticity, the child has difficulty moving from one position to another caused high muscle tone and imbalance between muscle groups. Gross and fine motor movement are slow and require excessive effort. Muscle tone is defined as the resistance a muscle offers to passive stretch. Normal muscle tone is a continuous state of mild contraction of muscle. It is dependent on the integrity of peripheral and central nervous system mechanisms and the properties of muscle, such as contractility, elasticity, ductility, and extensibility.

The characteristics of cerebral palsy spasticity by hypertonic muscle, hyperactive deep tendon reflexs, clonus, and abnormal spinal reflexs. The hypertonicity usually occurs in in definite patterns of flexion and extension. Typically the pattern of spasticity occurs in the antigravity muscles of the upper and lower extremities. Cerebral palsy spasticity in the upper extremity the flexor pattern usually dominates. I the lower extremity are extensors.

In cerebral palsy spasticity there is increased resistance to passive movement. The degree and pattern of spasticity are influenced by several factors. Spasticity in influenced by function of the postural reflex mechanism, such as the righting and equilibrium reactions, and the presence of primitive postural reflexes, such as the tonic neck reflexes, tonic labyrinthine reflexes, and associated reactions. Extrinsic factors cerebral palsy spasticity that also have an influence on the degree spasticity include anxiety, fear, environmental temperature extremes, painful physical conditions, rest, relaxation and good health.