2 Primitive Reflexes

Reactions

• Allows you to lose your balance, regain it, and return to the midline by using your head trunk

• Ex. righting, protective, equilibrium

What is the difference between labyrinthine and optical righting?

Optical = eyes open

Labyrinthine = eyes closed

Midbrain/cortical reactions

• Includes forward, sideways, backwards

• Whole body response that includes extremities when balance is lost

What is a reflex?

• Basic unit of movement

• Used for survival, nutrition, and protection

• Activate neural pathways for later life

When are most reflexes typically integrated?

Present at birth but integrated by CNS withing first year of life

How is crossed extension different from flexor

withdrawal?

The leg opposite of the stimulus reacts

Moro reflex

 Stimulus: sudden drop of the head in extension

 Response: causes the arms to abduct then flex in towards the body then cry (3 phases)

 Purpose: survival reaction

Spinal Galant reflex

 Stimulus: touching the mid to lower paraspinals on one side from top to bottom or bottom to top

 Response: the side that was stimulated will laterally flex and the hip will flex outward

 Purpose: teaches the brain lateral flexion and rotation, assists with getting through the birth canal and for preparation for crawling

Babinski reflex

• Stimulus: plantar surface of the foot- stroke the foot from the lateral to the medial side along the metatarsal heads

• Response: great toe will extend and abduct while the other toes extend and fan out, dorsiflexion, hip flexion, external rotation, and knee flexion

• Purpose: prepares the feet for standing and gait, helps with balance and coordination, helps to develop the whole lower extremity

Babkin-Palmomental

 Stimulus: firm pressure on the center of the palm

 Response: results in mouth opening, neck flexion and chin tuck

 Purpose: supports the feeding reflex (helps sucking, swallowing, biting, chewing), helps

with hand to mouth coordination, influences ATNR integration, hand-tongue and articulation coordination

Landau

• Stimulus: is the core

• Response: when the head extends, the arms and legs extend also against gravity; when head flexes, the arms and legs flex with gravity

• Purpose: strengthens muscle tone by strengthening the extensors, develops vestibular- ocular motor skills by facilitating horizontal and vertical orientation, binocular vision, and hearing, helps develop balance

Tonic/Brainstem reflex

These reflexes develop 2nd and affect posture and tone:

 Associated reactions

 Positive supporting

 Tonic labyrinthine reflex (TLR)

 Asymmetrical tonic neck reflex (ATNR)

 Symmetrical tonic neck reflex (STNR)

Associated reactions

Involuntary reaction due to a voluntary stimulus

Examples:

• Yawning makes the involved arm move

• Resisting hip adduction on non-involved side and the other involved side will move

Positive Support reflex

 Stimulus: weight of the infant on the feet when supported

 Response: causes the infant to bear some weight on the legs

 Purpose: preparation for gait and pelvic girdle strengthening

Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex (TLR)

 Stimulus: supine or prone

 Response: in supine-the head, back, arms, and legs all extend; in prone-the head, back, arms and legs will flex

 Purpose: begins to prepare infant for sitting, helps with balance; development of muscle tone; impaired ability to dev anti-gravity movt; integration of vestibular and visual systems

Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (STNR)

 Stimulus: neck position

 Response: in quadruped, when neck extends, the arms extend and legs flex; when neck flexes, the arms flex and legs extend

 Purpose: preparation for crawling, allows reaching and weight shift to facilitate balance and trunk stability, begins to work on visual accommodation by rocking back and forth; helps integrate TLR

Asymmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR)

 Stimulus: head turning to the side

 Response: arm and leg extension on the side the face is turned and elbow and hip flexion on the occipital side

 Purpose: development of eye-hand coordination, dev asymmetrical cross lateral movements and rotation, foundation for auditory processes and language, differentiation between hemispheres, specialization of executive functions , dev of limb dominance

What are interventions for reflexes?

 Whole brain activities-Brain gym, Bal-A-Vis X

 Isometric exercise within the reflex before active play

 First you want to see the full reflex then work on voluntary control

 Work on separating out the reflex pattern-exercises specific for certain reflex

 Reflex needs to become a choice (controlled) and not an involuntary movement

Protective extension

Extending arms to put arms out to keep from injury

What order do protective reactions occur in?

Forward, sideways, backward