Basal Ganglia Pathology Terms

FF Week 3

Akinesia

Inability to initiate movement; associated with fixed postures

Athetosis

Slow, involuntary, writhing, twisting, “wormlike” movements; frequently greater involvement in distal UEs

Bradykinesia

Decreased amplitude and velocity of voluntary movement

Chorea

Involuntary, rapid, irregular, jerky movements involving multiple joints; most apparent in UEs

Choreoathetosis

Movement disorder with features of both chorea and athetosis

• Chorea: involuntary, rapid, jerky

• Athetosis: involuntary, “wormlike” writhing, slow, twisting

Dystonia

Sustained involuntary contractions of agonist and antagonist muscles

Hemiballismus

Large-amplitude sudden, violent, flailing motions of the arm and leg of one side of the body

Hyperkinesis

Abnormally increased muscle activity or movement

Hypokinesis

Decreased motor response especially to a specific stimulus

Rigidity

Increase in muscle tone causing greater resistance to passive movement; greater in flexor muscles

• Leadpipe: uniform, constant resistance as limb is moved

• Cogwheel: series of brief relaxations or “catches” as limb is passively moved

Tremor (resting)

Involuntary, rhythmic, oscillatory movement observed at rest