Maturation of the Blink Reflex in Infants

Vecchierini-Blineau, M.F.; Guihéneuc, P

doi:10.1159/000115727

Cited by 30 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…As the peripheral components for the processing of acoustic signals are not appreciably different between these two groups of infants, the most likely etiology for this difference in response lies in the brainstem pathway. (Vecchierini-Blineau and Guiheneuc, 1984).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sensory processing in the term and preterm infant: Use of reflex modification procedures

Anday

Cohen

Kelley

et al. 1989

Developmental Psychobiology

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The present study uses the glabellar reflex and reflex modification procedures to assess acoustic and tactile sensory processing capabilities in the human neonate. Fourteen term infants and 28 clinically stable preterm infants were given identical test paradigms. Augmentation testing consisted of a 16 V dc tap presented simultaneously with a 90 dB SPL tone; inhibition testing consisted of a 16 V tap preceded 900 msec. by an identical tap. All 14 term infants showed augmentation with 8 of 14 at p less than 0.05 level and eleven of 14 showed significant inhibition at the 900 msec intertap interval. However, only 12 of 28 preterm infants demonstrated significant augmentation and none showed reliable inhibition. These data indicate that areas of the central nervous system that process sensory stimuli are not fully developed at the time of birth even in the term infant. Further, the neural system for augmentation and inhibition may be independent of each other.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sensory processing in the term and preterm infant: Use of reflex modification procedures

Anday

Cohen

Kelley

et al. 1989

Developmental Psychobiology

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“…There is great variability in the blink reflex for pre-term infants, neonates, and children of different ages [15][16][17][18][19][20] . Other physiological conditions influencing blink responses are: sleep-wake cycles 19,[21][22][23] , auditory stimulation 24 , attention and cognitive tests 25,26 , conditioning stimulation 26 , and habituation 27,28 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blink reflex: comparison of latency measurements in different human races

Kimaid

Resende

Castro

et al. 2002

Arq. Neuro-Psiquiatr.

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-The blink reflex latencies and cephalometric indexes were analysed in 30 male volunteers from three different races, 10 white, 10 black, and 10 Oriental. Ages ranged from 15 to 59 years, height from 1,60 to 1,80 m, and weight from 60 to 80 kg. Blink reflexes were obtained after unilateral electric stimulation of the supraorbital nerve for quantitative analysis of 3 responses, early ipsilateral (R1), late ipsilateral (R2i) and late contralateral (R2c), obtained from the orbicularis oculi muscle. Cephalometric indexes were calculated by multiplying the ratio between the longer transverse and the longer sagital head diameters by 100. The R1, R2i and R2c latencies were consistent with other published papers revealing no differences between the different racial groups. The mean of the cephalometric indexes of each group were consistent with respective racial characteristics. This study revealed that there are no differences between R1, R2i and R2c latencies in the 3 different studied races.KEY WORDS: blink reflex, races.Reflexo trigêmino-facial: comparação de medidas de latência em diferentes raças Reflexo trigêmino-facial: comparação de medidas de latência em diferentes raças Reflexo trigêmino-facial: comparação de medidas de latência em diferentes raças Reflexo trigêmino-facial: comparação de medidas de latência em diferentes raças Reflexo trigêmino-facial: comparação de medidas de latência em diferentes raças RESUMO -Latências do reflexo trigêmino-facial e índices cefalométricos foram analisados em 30 voluntários adultos normais, de 3 diferentes raças, sendo 10 brancos, 10 negros e 10 orientais. Idades variaram de 15 a 59 anos, alturas de 1,6 a 1,8 m e pesos de 60 a 80 kg. Os reflexos trigêmino-faciais foram obtidos por estimulação elétrica unilateral do nervo supra-orbital e captação nos músculos orbicularis oculi, para análise quantitativa de 3 respostas, ipsolateral precoce (R1), ipsolateral tardia (R2i) e contralateral tardia (R2c). Índices cefalométricos foram obtidos multiplicando-se por 100 a razão entre maior diâmetro transverso e maior diâmetro sagital do crânio. As médias dos índices cefalométricos de cada grupo foram compatíveis com as respectivas características raciais. As respostas R1, R2i e R2c não mostraram diferenças de latências estatisticamente significativas entre as 3 diferentes raças analisadas neste estudo. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: reflexo trigêmino-facial, raças.The blink reflex is a very practical reproducible electrical response, that can be used in comparative clinical studies and experimental models [1][2][3] . At the beginning of XX th century, there was a dispute about the authorship of the original description of the blink reflex 4 . The first report of the eye closure response to forehead percussion was made by Overend, in 1896 6 . The same reflex, obtained in response to percussion of the lateral supra-orbital region was later described by McCarthy 7 , and is still referred to by his name 5 . The blink reflex physiology began to be better understood when Kugelberg performed the fi...

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“…We observed a decreased eyeblink amplitude in quiet (non-REM) as compared to active (REM) sleep in the infants. Vecchierine-Blineau and Guiheneuc (26) showed that different states of waking and sleeping in adult and infant subjects influenced the second component of the blink reflex, causing a more pronounced depressed response during quiet sleep in the infant, and suggested the polysynaptic reflex arc may be subject to an inhibitory influence at the level of the reticular formation during non-REM sleep.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reflex Modification Audiometry: Assessment of Acoustic Sensory Processing in the Term Neonate

et al. 1988

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A B S T R A a . Behavioral and physiological work in animals and adult humans have established the sensitivity of various procedures and allowed delineation of the neuroanatomical pathways involved in sensory processing. Herein we used the glabellar reflex and reflex modification procedures to assess acoustic sensory processing capabilities in the term newborn infant. The eyeblink-eliciting device consisted of a miniature solenoid which could deliver a controlled tap. A photoreflective densitometer attached to a TDH-39 earphone assessed the eyeblinks. A total of 98 term infants was studied to determine how a response to a reflex-eliciting event (tap) was modified (either augmented or inhibited) by a mild exteroceptive stimulus (tone) which was presented at an appropriate lead interval. Ninety adult subjects were given identical testing procedures and their data were compared to that of the infants. The results of this study showed that newborn infants reliably exhibited an eyeblink response after a tap to the glabella. With fixed intensity tones, frequencies from 1 to 4 kHz produced equivalent amounts of reflex augmentation in infants and adult subjects. Blink amplitude increased as a function of increased tap and tone intensity in both infants and adults. State change was shown to affect the amplitude of the reflexive eyeblink, but not the augmentation effect. However, neonates failed to show inhibition to either acoustic or tactile stimuli at an interstimulus interval that produced significant inhibition in the adult. These data indicate that reflex modification procedures provide an objective assessment of acoustic sensory processing in the term neonate. Further, they not only suggest that areas of the central nervous system that process sensory stimuli are not fully developed even at term birth, but that the neural system for augmentation and inhibition may be independent of each other. (Pediatr Res 23: 357-363, 1988) Abbreviation ical and electrophysiological measures, reflex behavior, and learning procedures. Not all of these methods are useful at all ages; not all provide objective measurement of auditory perception.The purpose herein was to investigate the applicability of a psychophysical approach, based on behavioral phenomenon called reflex modification, to objectively assess acoustic sensory competence in the term infant (2, 3). This testing procedure originated in the observation that a variety of auditory and nonauditory stimuli consistently evoked a startle reflex in both humans and animals, the most constant component of which was the eyeblink (4-7). Subsequent investigation established that the elicited reflex could be modulated in amplitude by a variety of sensory stimuli and that the changes in eyeblink response produced by these stimuli could be monitored by measuring the amplitude of the blink component of the reflex (8, 9). Our study used a tone as a reflex-modifying event and a tap to the glabella as the reflex-eliciting stimulus. By varying the characteristics of the tone and its tempo...

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Maturation of the Blink Reflex in Infants

Cited by 30 publications

References 23 publications

Sensory processing in the term and preterm infant: Use of reflex modification procedures

Sensory processing in the term and preterm infant: Use of reflex modification procedures

Blink reflex: comparison of latency measurements in different human races

Reflex Modification Audiometry: Assessment of Acoustic Sensory Processing in the Term Neonate

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