Re: PD terms?

[Pat Higgo <higgowoman@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey Hans,
I had a feeling that this was the Babinski reflex but I had never heard it
phrased this way before.  Thanks for posting all the great info.  This is a good
thing for me to know as well as David.
Peace
Pat

Hans van der Genugten wrote:

> Hi David,
>
> >> Extensor plantar responses <<
>
> This is the same as the Babinski reflex.
>
> Hans.
>
> Babinski reflex: An important neurologic test based, believe it or not, upon
> what the big toe does when the sole of the foot is stimulated. If the big
> toe goes up, that may mean trouble.
>
> The Babinski reflex is obtained by stimulating the external portion (the
> outside) of the sole. The examiner begins the stimulation back at the heel
> and goes forward to the base of the toes. There are diverse ways to elicit
> the Babinski response. A useful way that requires no special equipment is
> with firm pressure from the examiner's thumb. Just stroke the sole firmly
> with the thumb from back to front along the outside edge.
>
> Care must be taken not to overdo it. Too vigorous stimulation may cause
> withdrawal of the foot or toe, which can be mistaken as a Babinski response.
>
> The Babinski reflex is characterized by extension of the great toe and also
> by fanning of the other toes.
>
> Most newborn babies are not neurologically mature and therefore show a
> Babinski response. Upon stimulation of the sole, they extend the great toe .
> Many young infants do this, too, and it is perfectly normal. However, in
> time during infancy the Babinski response vanishes and, under normal
> circumstances, should never return.
>
> A Babinski response in an older child or adult is abnormal. It is a sign of
> a problem in the central nervous system (CNS), most likely in a part of the
> CNS called the pyramidal tract.
>
> Asymmetry of the Babinski response -- when it is present on one side but not
> the other -- is abnormal. It is a sign not merely of trouble but helps to
> lateralize that trouble (tell which side of the CNS is involved).
>
> The Babinski reflex is known by a number of other names: the plantar
> response (because the sole is the plantar surface of the foot), the toe or
> big toe sign or phenomenon, the Babinski phenomenon or sign. (It is wrong to
> say that the Babinski sign is positive or negative; it is present or
> absent).
>
> Babinski, despite the Slavic sound of the name, was French: Joseph Francois
> Felix Babinski (1857-1932). He will never be forgotten in medicine, thanks
> to the reflex he found.