Westphal's sign is the clinical correlate of the absence or decrease of patellar reflex or knee jerk. Patellar reflex or knee jerk is a kind of deep or stretch reflex where an application of a stimulus to the patellar tendon such as strike by a solid object or hammer caused the leg to extend due to such stimulus causes the quadriceps femoris muscle to contract.[citation needed]
| Westphal's sign | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Patellar tendon reflex arc | |
| Differential diagnosis | Peripheral nerve disease, Motor cortex lesion |
It is named for Karl Friedrich Otto Westphal (1833-1890).[1][2]
Associated conditions edit
Westphal's sign has a clinical significance used in determining neurodisorders or diseases such as:[citation needed]
- receptor damage, peripheral nerve disease, involving the dorsal(sensory) columns of the spinal cord and cerebellar lesions
- lesions present within the motor cortex of the brain or the pyramidal tracts which it combined with muscular spasms[clarification needed]
- complete interruption of sensory and/or motor impulse transmission in the femoral nerve
References edit
- ^ synd/945 at Who Named It?
- ^ C. F. O. Westphal (1875). Über einige durch mechanische Einwirkung auf Sehnen und Muskeln hervorgebrachte Bewegungs-Erscheinungen. Vol. 5. Berlin: Archiv für Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten. pp. 803–834.
- Jensen, David Ph.D. (1976). The Principles of Physiology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
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