Plantar reflex - wikipedia Plantar reflex Plantar reflex Babinski response / Babinski sign ( pathological ) Medical diagnostics The reflex occurs upon stroking of the sole of the foot with a sharp object such as a pen. If the reflex occurs in adults as illustrated at bottom it may be due to nerve damage or disease. ICD - 9 - CM 796.1 MedlinePlus 003294 ( edit on Wikidata ) The plantar reflex is a reflex elicited when the sole of the foot is stimulated with a blunt instrument. The reflex can take one of two forms. In normal adults, the plantar reflex causes a downward response of the hallux ( flexion ). An upward response ( extension ) of the hallux is known as the Babinski response or Babinski sign, named after the neurologist Joseph Babinski. The presence of the Babinski sign can identify disease of the spinal cord and brain in adults, and also exists as a primitive reflex in infants. While first described in the medical literature by Babinski in 1896, the reflex has been identified in art at least as early as Botticelli 's Madonna and Child With an Angel, painted in the mid 15th Century. Contents 1 Methods 2 Interpretation 2.1 In infants 2.2 Pathways 3 Relationship to Hoffmann 's reflex 4 Babinski - like responses 4.1 Abnormal reflex seen as flexion of toes 5 References Methods Pathological Babinski 's sign in adult The lateral side of the sole of the foot is rubbed with a blunt instrument or device so as not to cause pain, discomfort, or injury to the skin ; the instrument is run from the heel along a curve to the toes ( metatarsal pads ). Many reflex hammers taper at the end of the handle to a point which was used for testing the plantar response in the past, however, due to the tightening of infection control regulation this is no longer recommended. Either a single use device or the thumb nail should be used. There are three responses possible : Flexor : the toes curve down and inwards, and the foot inverts ; this is the response seen in healthy adults. Indifferent : there is no response. Extensor : the hallux dorsiflexes, and the other toes fan out ; this is Babinski 's sign, which indicates damage to the central nervous system. As the lesion responsible for the sign expands, so does the area from which the afferent Babinski response may be elicited. The Babinski response is also normal while asleep and after a long period of walking. Interpretation Babinski 's sign in a healthy newborn The Babinski sign can indicate upper motor neuron lesion constituting damage to the corticospinal tract. Occasionally, a pathological plantar reflex is the first and only indication of a serious disease process and a clearly abnormal plantar reflex often prompts detailed neurological investigations, including CT scanning of the brain or MRI of the spine, as well as lumbar puncture for the study of cerebrospinal fluid. The phrase `` negative Babinski sign '' is sometimes used for the normal flexor plantar response. In infants Main article : Primitive reflexes Infants will usually show an extensor response. In one study of 256 healthy infants, the response to testing was extensor in 73.8 %, flexor in 8.9 %, and equivocal in 17.3 % This extensor response occurs because the corticospinal pathways that run from the brain down the spinal cord are not fully myelinated at this age, so the reflex is not inhibited by the cerebral cortex. The extensor response usually disappears - giving way to the flexor response - by 12 months of age. Its persistence beyond age 2 - 3 indicates a problem in the brain or spinal cord. Pathways Afferent : Nociception detected in the S1 dermatome and travels up the tibial nerve to the sciatic nerve to roots of L5, S1 and synapse in the anterior horn to elicit the motor response. Efferent : Motor response back through the L5, S1 roots to the sciatic nerve to its bifurcation. Toe flexors are innervated by the tibial nerve. Toe extensors ( extensor hallicus longus, extensor digitorum longus ) are innervated by the deep peroneal nerve. Loss of normal adult descending pyramidal control of the reflex arc to suppress extensor withdrawal results in the upgoing toes in the plantar reflex known as Babinski 's sign. Relationship to Hoffmann 's reflex Main article : Hoffmann 's reflex The Hoffmann 's reflex is sometimes described as the upper limb equivalent of the Babinski sign because both indicate upper motor neuron dysfunction. Mechanistically, they differ significantly ; the finger flexor reflex is a simple monosynaptic spinal reflex involving the flexor digitorum profundus that is normally fully inhibited by upper motor neurons. The pathway producing the plantar response is more complicated, and is not monosynaptic. Babinski - like responses The plantar reflex can be elicited in a number of ways, which were described in the late 19th and early 20th century. These have their own eponyms. Bing sign -- multiple pinpricks on the dorsum of the foot Cornell sign -- scratching along the inner side of the extensor hallucis longus tendon Chaddock sign -- stroking the lateral malleolus Gonda sign -- flexing and suddenly releasing the 4th toe Gordon sign -- squeezing the calf muscle Moniz sign -- forceful passive plantar flexion of the ankle Oppenheim sign -- applying pressure to the medial side of the tibia Schaeffer sign -- squeezing the Achilles tendon Silva sign -- pinching the rectus femoris muscle Stransky sign -- vigorously abducting and suddenly releasing the little toe Strümpell sign -- patient attempts to flex the knee against resistance Throckmorton reflex -- percussion over the metatarsophalangeal joint of the big toe Abnormal reflex seen as flexion of toes Bekhterev - Mendel reflex -- flexion of the 2nd to 5th toes on percussion of the dorsum of the foot Rossolimo sign -- exaggerated flexion of the toes induced by rapid percussion on the tips of the toes References Jump up ^ synd / 366 at Who Named It ? Jump up ^ Comptes rendus de la Société de Biologie, Vol. 48, 1896, p. 207, http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6459605g/f225.image Jump up ^ Massey, E.W. ; Sanders, L. ( 1 January 1989 ). `` Babinski 's Sign in Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque Art ''. Archives of Neurology. 46 ( 1 ) : 85 -- 88. doi : 10.1001 / archneur. 1989.00520370087025. Jump up ^ `` plantar reflex '' at Dorland 's Medical Dictionary Jump up ^ Larner, A.J. ( 2006 ). A Dictionary of Neurological Signs. Springer. pp. 50 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 387 - 26214 - 7. Jump up ^ Gupta, A ; Gupta, Piyush ( July 2003 ). `` Neonatal plantar response revisited ''. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health. 39 ( 5 ) : 349 -- 351. doi : 10.1046 / j. 1440 - 1754.2003. 00172. x. Jump up ^ `` Neonatal reflexes ''. Retrieved 24 May 2017. Jump up ^ `` Medline plus : Babinski reflex ''. Retrieved 24 May 2017. Jump up ^ Neelon, Francis A ; Harvey, Elisabeth ( January 21, 1999 ). `` The Babinski Sign ''. N Engl J Med. doi : 10.1056 / NEJM199901213400305. Jump up ^ Futagi, Y ; Suzuki, Y ( August 2010 ). `` Neural mechanism and clinical significance of the plantar grasp reflex in infants ''. Pediatric neurology. 43 ( 2 ) : 81 -- 6. doi : 10.1016 / j. pediatrneurol. 2010.04. 002. PMID 20610116. Jump up ^ Harrop JS, Hanna A, Silva MT, Sharan A ( 2007 ). `` Neurological manifestations of cervical spondylosis : an overview of signs, symptoms, and pathophysiology ''. Neurosurgery. 60 ( 1 Supp1 1 ) : S14 -- 20. doi : 10.1227 / 01.NEU.0000215380.71097.EC. PMID 17204875. Jump up ^ Kumar, SP ; Ramasubramanian, D ( December 2000 ). `` The Babinski sign -- a reappraisal ''. Neurology India. 48 ( 4 ) : 314 -- 8. PMID 11146592. Jump up ^ Walker, H. Kenneth ; Hall, W. Dallas ; Schlossberg, J. Willis Hurst ; illustrations by Leon ; Boyter, Charles H. ( 1990 ). `` Chapter 73 The Plantar Reflex ''. In Walker, H. Kenneth. Clinical methods : the history, physical, and laboratory examinations ( 3rd ed. ). Boston : Butterworths. ISBN 0 - 409 - 90077 - X. Table 73.1 Variants of the Babinski Sign ^ Jump up to : Silva Rosas, Carlos ( 2013 ). Semiología y Fundamentos de la Neurología Clínica ( First ed. ). AMOLCA. pp. 66 -- 67. ISBN 978 - 958 - 8760 - 73 - 5. Nervous system physiology : neurophysiology - reflex Cranial nerve midbrain : Pupillary light reflex Accommodation reflex pons / medulla : Jaw jerk reflex Corneal reflex Caloric reflex test / Vestibulo - ocular reflex / Oculocephalic reflex Pharyngeal ( gag ) reflex Stretch reflexes upper limb : Biceps reflex C5 / C6 Brachioradialis reflex C6 Triceps reflex C7 / C8 lower limb : Patellar reflex L2 - L4 Ankle jerk reflex S1 / S2 Plantar reflex L5 - S2 Primitive reflexes Galant Gastrocolic Grasp Moro Rooting Stepping Sucking Tonic neck Parachute Superficial reflexes Abdominal reflex Cremasteric reflex Lists general alphabetical by organ Cardiovascular Bainbridge reflex Bezold -- Jarisch reflex Coronary reflex Diving reflex Oculocardiac reflex Baroreflex Reflex bradycardia Reflex tachycardia Respiratory Churchill -- Cope reflex Other Acoustic reflex H - reflex Golgi tendon reflex Optokinetic Startle response Withdrawal reflex ( Crossed extensor reflex ) Symmetrical tonic neck reflex Eponymous medical signs for nervous system CNS Head, general Battle 's sign Broca aphasia Kernig 's sign Macewen 's sign Myerson 's sign Stroop test Wada test Dix - Hallpike test Hirano body Multiple sclerosis Dawson 's fingers Lhermitte 's sign Charcot 's neurologic triad Uhthoff 's phenomenon Other Romberg 's test increased intracranial pressure Cushing 's triad Miller Fisher test PNS Reflexes of extremities / corticospinal tract Combination Jendrassik maneuver Lower limb Babinski sign Chaddock reflex Oppenheim 's sign Westphal 's sign Upper limb Hoffmann 's sign Other torso / limbs Upper limb Froment 's sign carpal tunnel syndrome Tinel sign Phalen maneuver Lower limb Abadie 's sign of tabes dorsalis Gowers ' sign Hoover 's sign Lasègue 's sign Trendelenburg 's sign Torso Beevor 's sign General Todd 's paresis Jolly 's test Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Plantar_reflex&oldid=817967427 '' Categories : Reflexes Hidden categories : All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from May 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Azərbaycanca Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français Galego Hrvatski Italiano עברית Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Српски / srpski Svenska Türkçe 中文 14 more Edit links This page was last edited on 31 December 2017, at 17 : 37. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: physiological conditions in which babinski sign is positive
Answer: disease of the spinal cord and brain in adults