Spasticity: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 21:17, 6 May 2023

Spasticity is an entity characterized with excessive velocity-dependent muscle contraction
It results from the loss of inhibition of UMN, and ends in tightness, stiffness or pull of muscles
UMN disease contain Spasticity and Clonus as two separate entities
Spasticity naturally depends on Muscle speed and range of motion. It manifests itself when the muscle contracts at high speed. This means that when the speed and amplitude of contraction exceeds the threshold, Spasticity occurs
Depends on the location, Spasticity might cause problem in Movement / Speech or Pain

Asymmetric: Because it involves the antagonist muscles
Velocity-dependent: It increases tonic stretch reflexes and tendon jerks, resulting from hyper-excitability of the stretch reflex

Strength dependent: Increasing the strength of muscle stretch reflex causes the muscle to contract with greater intensity and power in response to stretching, and this contraction has a direct relationship with the strength of stretching. In this condition, spasticity is occurred.

	GSS	CJD	JE	EEE/WEE	HTLV-1
Paralysis, Spastic	+++	+++	+++	+++	+++
Hyper reflexia	+++	+++	+++	+++	+++

Why I do not Spasm as a symptom of Spasticity?

Spasm is an entity itself
Pain of Spasticity is not a dynamic symptom, but is a static/ Mechanical symptoms caused by muscular stretching

It mostly occurs in CNS disorders affecting UMN in the form of a lesion or syndrome
It can also be present in various types of multiple sclerosis or neuromuscular cerebral palsy
Spastic cerebral palsy is the most common form of CP

One factor that is thought to be related to spasticity is the stretch reflex
Combination of decreased inhibition and an increased depolarized state of cell membranes, decreases action potential threshold for nerve signal conduction, and thus increases activity of structures innervated by the affected nerves (spasticity).
Muscles affected in this way have many other potential features of altered performance in addition to spasticity, including
- Muscle weakness
- Decreased movement control
- Clonus
- Exaggerated deep tendon reflexes
- Decreased endurance

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 *Spasticity is an entity characterized with excessive velocity-dependent muscle contraction
 * It results from the loss of inhibition of UMN, and ends in tightness, stiffness or pull of muscles
-* [[UMN, Upper Motor Neuron|UMN disease]] contain Spasticity and [[Clonus]] as two separate entities.
+* [[UMN, Upper Motor Neuron|UMN disease]] contain Spasticity and [[Clonus]] as two separate entities
 * Spasticity naturally depends on Muscle speed and range of motion. It manifests itself when the muscle contracts at high speed. This means that when the speed and amplitude of contraction exceeds the threshold, Spasticity occurs
 * Depends on the location, Spasticity might cause problem in Movement / Speech or Pain