This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages without signing in

Tonic neck reflex (asymmetrical)

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

This is a primitive reflex that is seen at intervals in babies in the first few months of life.

When in supine position the child lies with his head turned to one side with his ipsilateral arm extended to the same side. Often the contralateral knee is flexed. If the head is passively rotated then there may be increased tone of the upper limb on the side to which rotation occurs.

There is an increased reflex in severe cerebral palsy. The reflex may also persist in these patients.


Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.