SPASTICITY-FUNCTIONAL ASPECTS

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Abstract
It is concluded that the parkinsonian rigidity represents an exaggeration of the tonic properties of the stretch reflex, and that the pathophysiology of the rigidity ought to be reconsidered from the point of view of a hyperactivity of the nuclear-chain intrafusal system, which will increase the static and decrease the dynamic sensitivity of the primary endings of the muscle spindles as well as increase the level of group II afferent impulses from the secondary endings of the spindles. The need for quantitative measurement of the relevant parameters in order to characterize the various types of spasticity and to elucidate their pathophysiology is obvious.