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Physiological reflexes of the newborn and the timing of their disappearance. Weak reflexes in a newborn baby: when should you sound the alarm? Automatic walking reflex, or stepping reflex

When a newborn is placed on his stomach, he reflexively turns his head. This protective physiological reaction is expressed in a person from the first hours of life. Children with impaired central nervous system are not able to do this and run the risk of suffocation. Babies have conditioned and unconditioned reflexes. The former are acquired over time, the latter are inherited from ancestors. Reflexes of a newborn - congenital (unconditional) exist for 3-5 years and gradually fade. They are replaced by conditionals.

Basic reflexes in an infant

Nature provided for the fact that a person who has just been born is deprived of the ability to survive in an aggressive environment, and endowed him with abilities by which he can adapt and not perish. A reflex is a physiological reaction of the body to various stimuli. If a child was born with severe pathologies, his reflexes are either inhibited or absent. The main reflexes of newborns are divided into conditioned (acquired) and unconditioned (pathological).

Unconditioned reflexes - what does it mean?

Inherent from birth, transmitted to a person by inheritance, unconditioned reflexes are also transmitted to future descendants. Automatic simple response nervous system to various stimuli happens:

food - swallowing, salivation, sucking;
defensive (defensive) - blinking, sneezing, lacrimation, coughing, jerking an arm or leg from hot or cold objects;
indicative - turning the torso and head, tracking with the eyes.

The unconditioned reflexes of newborns, if possible, ensure safety, maintaining and regulating the invariability of the internal environment of the body.

Conditioned reflexes - what does it mean?

Human abilities acquired during the existence, based on innate reflexes, are called conditional. Academician Pavlov I.P. thoroughly studied them using the example of dogs. Instincts are awakened by the influence annoying factors(light, sound, time), to which the body was previously indifferent. Every human being gains a lot in his life conditioned reflexes which are of particular importance and form the basis of his knowledge and experience. But acquired habits and reflexes are not passed on to children.

For example, mommy organized feeding time every 3 hours. For a week, the baby develops a reflex feeling of hunger, and the baby begins to act up at the time set for feeding.

List of neonatal reflexes

Vital significant reflexes of newborns are provided for all cases: some help develop and form new, complicated ones, others will remain forever, some help to survive the moment of appearance and immediately fade away after birth.

Specialistsdivide the congenital reflexes of infants into:

oral

sucking- the most important ability that appears in the first hours of life. Remains up to a year and a half. The newborn wraps his lips around his finger, nipple, nipple and sucks rhythmically. In full-term, properly developed children, it is well developed and has a calming effect on the baby.
Swallowing- appears after birth and remains forever.
proboscis- a type of oral reflex that allows you to stick out your lip, resembling a tube or an elephant's trunk. So the muscles around the mouth spontaneously contract. Disappears at 3 months.
Palmar-oral (or Babkin)- when a newborn baby is pressed with fingers on both palms, his mouth opens slightly. This reflex contributes to the nutrition of the crumbs and is clearly expressed when he is hungry. Disappears by 3 months. If the reflex is absent or weakened, it is likely the child had an injury to the cervical spine during childbirth.
Search (or Kussmaul)- when the corner of the baby's mouth is touched with a finger, nipple or other object, he begins to turn towards the irritant - this is how he looks for food. Fades away by 3-4 months. Later, the search for food is carried out visually.

spinal

The doctor looks and fixes the reactions responsible for the functioning of the muscular apparatus.

Protective- the main reflex that forms after birth. The child is laid out on his stomach, and he instinctively turns his head to be able to breathe. Fades away by 1.5 months.
Emetic is a vital protective reflex. Feeding on milk, the baby can choke. When triggered, the newborn baby's tongue protrudes and food comes out.

grasping

Robinson and Yanishvsky- appear when you grab the fingers of a doctor or mother with your palms and try to hold on as long as possible. The baby can even be raised at these moments. It manifests itself when he is hungry, then the fists involuntarily clench. When a child suffers from paresis of the hands, the reflex will be weakened or absent. Inhibited children show a weakened reaction, excitable - enhanced. It fades away at 3-4 months, and if it remains after 5 months, then the child is suspected of having neurological disorders.
Plantar (or Babinski)- when the child is lightly stroked on the outside of the sole - his fingers open like a fan, and his feet bend. The main sign by which the condition, symmetry and dynamism of movements is assessed. Fades away by two years.

Motor

Kernig's reflex- when the knee and hip joint are unclenched, they are compressed again. Completely disappears after 4 months.
Startle reflex (Moro)- when the baby reacts to sharp, loud sounds. First, he spreads his arms to the sides, opening his fists, and then presses them to his chest, embracing himself.
Machine walking- when a newborn tries to walk, if he is held vertically under the armpits. Such a “gait” is evaluated by the degree of support and the completeness of stepping on the foot. Emphasis on fingers and clinging feet to each other is a sign of a violation..
Support reflex. When the baby is held by the armpits above the surface of the table, he bends his knees, and then stands, firmly pressing his feet to the support and “stands” with his legs straightened, for 10 seconds. Remains 1.5 months.
Bauer reflex (or spontaneous crawling). When the baby is turned over on his tummy and his palm is placed under his legs, he begins to reflexively push off and crawl, trying to help himself with his arms (). If you put it on its side, no movement occurs. Expressed for 3-4 days and fades in 3-4 months. Children born with asphyxia, brain injuries or intracranial hemorrhages do not have such a reflex. And if it does not disappear before 6 months, then there is probably a disease of the central nervous system.
Reflex Galant. When a finger is drawn in the region of 1.5 cm from the baby's ridge, his back arches, and the leg from the irritation side unbends.
Perez reflex- an unpleasant test for the baby. From the coccyx to the neck area, a finger is drawn along the spine, slightly pressing. The child unbends the torso, bends the legs and arms, begins to scream and cry. Doctors try to arrange this check at the end of the examination. Physiological reflex up to 4 months.

Pozotonic

Magnus-Klein- when the child's head is turned to the side, the hands and shoulders take a certain position, similar to the position of a swordsman. Its arm and leg are straightened where the face is located, and those on the other side, on the contrary, are bent. The reflex reaction exists up to 2 months.

Nature has laid down more innate reflexes, still unexplored by medicine. But knowing the basic ones, parents themselves can determine them in a baby, stimulating and training instincts. Active contact of the child with parents will expand his physiological abilities, strengthen motor activity and the opportunity to better adapt to the world.

Checkmake light touches, trying not to cause pain and discomfort.

Table of onset and extinction of reflexes

Scientists note that there is a relationship between the development of the brain and the extinction of primary reflexes. Inferior reactions over time are replaced by more advanced and complex ones. The presence or absence of simple reflex abilities is an indicator of the formation and development of the child's nervous system. All children are different and do not always fit into the statistical data, going beyond them either in "plus" or "minus". If the differences are significant, such children are required close attention and special care.

Up to a year healthy babies develop approximately the same way, lagging behind or ahead of each other in a small time frame.

Name of the reflex	Appearance time	Fading time	Pathologies
Search	from birth	4 months, up to 12 months in a dream	no reflex in sleep
sucking	from birth	3-5 months up to 7 months in a dream	premature babies, with CNS depression
Magnus-Klein	from birth to 2 months	6 months	damage to upper motor neurons if the reflex remains after 6 months.
Machine walking	from birth	3-4 months	absence with paralysis of the legs, cerebral palsy
Prehensile	from birth	4-6 months, then simple grasping of objects appears	pathology of the central nervous system
Startle reflex (Moro)	from birth	no later than 4 months.	when does not resolve after 6 mo, possible CNS disorder, paralysis, or fracture of the collarbone
Plantar	from birth	8 months	cerebral palsy, CNS pathology

Reasons for the weak development of reflexes

Sometimes in a baby, reflexes work late, they are inhibited, poorly expressed, or, conversely, are intensely manifested. This can be caused by both trauma difficult childbirth, response to medications as well as a consequence of disease. Weak spinal, grasping and oral reflexes appear in preterm, born babies with minor asphyxia. If a mother observes a weak sucking and swallowing reaction in a newborn, this is a signal that he is not hungry. Before feeding, reflexes appear more clearly.

When reflexes are not fully expressed in an infant, this is a serious problem that requires the intervention of skilled doctors and resuscitation procedures. The causes of inhibition can be severe birth trauma - strangulation by the umbilical cord, pathologies prenatal development, disturbances in the work of the nervous system. An increased reflex response is elicited infectious diseases, pathologies muscle tone, nervous excitability.

The doctor, evaluating the baby's reflexes, pays attention not only to their presence and reaction. Talk about serious illnesses and pathologies is possible in cases where they are accompanied by other dangerous symptoms.

” №11/2010 23.07.12

Healthy child at birth must have full set physiological reflexes. Pathology is their absence in the neonatal period, as well as a delay in their reverse development.

Be sure to check the reflexes of a newborn - this will help you make sure that your baby is developing correctly.

When a doctor examines a newly born child, he necessarily pays attention to the manifestation of unconditioned reflexes. By studying their condition, the doctor receives important information about the activity of the central nervous system of the newborn and, by certain symptoms, can determine whether there are any deviations from the norm.

Moro reflex in newborns

Lay the baby on its back and clap your hands on the bed next to his head. He will open his fists, spread his arms to the sides and abruptly hug himself with them. At the same time, the legs will either stretch out or press to the stomach. Normally, the Moro reflex (as it is scientifically called) usually lasts up to 3-4 months. In all healthy newborns, it is called quite well and is always the same in both hands. Scientists say that the Moro reflex is caused by the need to grab mom in a dangerous situation.

Support reflex in newborns

When the child is lying on his stomach, put your hand under his feet. He kicks off with his legs and moves forward. Sometimes a little support (for example, just your finger) is enough for him to pick up speed. He can rest against the bars of the bed, and against the side of the changing table. So don't leave your little one unattended. Bauer's automatism is active until the 4th month. Then he fades away. The assessment of this reflex is of great diagnostic importance for the neonatologist.

The support reflex is also very important for assessing the state of the central nervous system of a newborn. Normally, it looks like this: if you take a newborn under the armpits, then he reflexively bends his legs at the hip and knee joints. At the same time, if he is placed against a support, he unbends his legs and firmly rests his entire foot on the surface of the table and so “stands” for up to 10 seconds. Normally, the support reflex is constant, well expressed and gradually disappears by 4-5 weeks of age.

Automatic walking reflex in newborns

Try to do one more "exercise". Raise the baby under the armpits (feet should only touch the surface), and then slightly tilt it forward. little fidget takes a few steps. This reflex is normally well evoked in all newborns and disappears by 2 months of age. Evaluation of the automatic walking reflex is very important for the doctor, as it helps to identify, in the event of an existing lesion of the nervous system, its place and degree. The warning signs are complete absence reflex automatic walking or walking on tiptoe with crossed legs.

Perez reflex in newborns

In order to elicit this reflex, which in medicine is called the Perez reflex, the doctor places the child face down on his palm. Then, slightly pressing, he runs his finger along the spine of the crumbs from the bottom up - from the coccyx to the neck. In response to this touch, the baby's spine bends, the arms and legs extend, and the head rises. Checking the work of this reflex gives the doctor information about the functioning of the spinal cord throughout its entire length. Often this manipulation is unpleasant for newborns, and they react to it by crying. Fine Perez reflex well expressed during the first month of a child's life, it gradually weakens and completely disappears by the end of the third month.

Sucking reflex in newborns

This reflex appears first in a baby: even on an ultrasound, you can see how he sucks his finger. After birth, the baby hones sucking reflex while at the mother's breast. As soon as you touch his nipple to his lips, he will immediately begin to drink milk. This reaction persists for quite a long time - even after a year. Another automatism is associated with the search for a breast: stroke the corner of the baby’s mouth with your little finger, and you will see how he turns in this direction and sticks out his lower lip.

The grasp reflex in newborns

Young mothers immediately notice: no matter what they put into a small palm, you can get it back with great difficulty. The baby clamps anything in the pen - the edge of the sheet, mother's hair, rattles. Sometimes, when this reflex is evoked, the child grabs an object or an adult’s finger so tightly that such a “cling-on” crumb can be lifted into the air by the finger! And this surprises many parents. Well, who would have thought that a newborn baby, outwardly seeming to be a completely helpless creature, can develop in his hands such a “muscular strength” that is able to keep his body in limbo! Normally, the Robinson reflex in all newborns should be considered mandatory. By 3-4 months of life, on the basis of this unconditioned reflex, the child develops a purposeful grasp of the toy, and the good severity of this reflex further contributes to a more rapid development in him. fine motor skills.

So-called lower grasp reflex caused by light pressure with the fingertips on the front of the sole of the newborn. In response to this touch, the child bends his toes. At healthy children this reflex persists until about 12-14 months. Mom can notice him during a foot massage - usually the baby bends his fingers. And this suggests that he is developing correctly. The baby spreads his toes like a fan only when you touch the outside of the foot or heel. This automatism passes by the 5th month.

After giving birth, the newborn begins to undergo a process of adaptation to new conditions for him. To cope with a difficult task, the baby is helped by special skills that are divided into two types - conditional, unconditional. The first are given to the baby from birth, the second are acquired. The degree of development of reflexes in a newborn indicates the nature of its development and may indicate the presence of problems.

Babies have unconditioned reflexes from birth. They appear as a child's response to a specific stimulus. They are characterized by the appearance and disappearance in a certain period of development. Conditional or acquired reactions appear in a newborn as a result of experience in which changes occur in brain cells, observed physiological changes and psycho-emotional development takes place.

Types of reflexes in a baby

Up to 28 days, newborns have exclusively unconditioned types of reflexes that ensure the process of their adaptation to the world. In infants, about 15 varieties of unconditioned reactions are distinguished. According to some of them, at the time of birth, doctors assess the condition of the baby. The baby during this period does not know how to control own body and movement, since the brain is not yet capable of performing such functions.

The appearance of such reflexes and their gradual extinction has a certain regularity and a monthly schedule.

oral

Oral reflexes enable babies to provide themselves with food, they are responsible for the right process sucking. The group consists of several types, each of them has its own purpose.

Allocate:

sucking;
swallowing;
proboscis;
exploratory;
Babkin.

Some of the abilities can already be observed in the fetus and visualized during ultrasound. For example, when examining a mother, one can see how the child puts his finger to his mouth and performs sucking movements. A similar ability is present in infants from birth, when, when hit foreign object V oral cavity he grabs it with his lips and tongue, begins intensive sucking.

Some oral reactions disappear in babies by 3-4 months. Others are able to persist for 3 years, such as suckling.

spinal

Spinal reactions are involuntary movements of an infant made by the body, arms or legs in response to an external stimulus. This category includes:

prehensile;
protective;
plantar;
Babinsky and a number of others.

Such skills provide the baby with safety and protection.

Pozotonic

Postural types of reactions of infants are associated with the skills to hold the head, sitting posture and stand correctly. Thanks to these abilities, the baby has the ability to correctly distribute the various degrees of load on the muscle fibers, which occurs and depends on the nature of the body position.

How are they manifested and what are the characteristics

Most congenital reactions are observed in children under 1 year of age, after which they disappear. Most of them occur in the first months of life, disappearing by 4 months. The time of their extinction is different, which is due to the period that the baby needs to fully adapt to new conditions. Among them are those that contribute to the emergence of new skills or are observed throughout life.

proboscis

When you touch the baby's lips, they curl up and form a "proboscis" shape. Such a sucking reflex is associated with an automatic contraction of the circular muscle located in the oral cavity.

Search

The Kussmaul reflex is characteristic only of newborn children. When touching and lightly stroking the lips with a finger, the child actively tries to find maternal breast, which is expressed in the lowering of the lower sponge and the parallel movement of the tongue of the crumbs in the direction of finding the stimulus.

sucking

The most important of the reflexes of babies appears in the womb. It is expressed in the implementation by the infant of rhythmic sucking movements immediately after an object enters his mouth, which is often a nipple. By the severity of this ability, pediatricians assess the degree of maturity in premature babies.

Babkin palmar-oral reflex

Moderate finger pressure on the baby's palms causes the baby to open its mouth and move the head forward. Such a reflex is due to the desire of the newborn to seek food for himself.

Prehensile

The grasping reaction is expressed in the baby's ability to hold the object tightly. When a finger of an adult or other object enters the palm of the hand, the baby unconsciously squeezes the fingers of the palm. The grip can be so strong that the baby can be lifted.

Moro reflex

The reaction of the baby to the impact of the stimulus proceeds in two stages. First, the baby makes a spread of his arms to the sides, after which he opens his palms, performing a movement that imitates a hug. You can cause a similar reaction in a newborn different ways:

simultaneously slap on the plane of the surface on which the baby is located, approximately 15 cm from the baby;
suddenly straighten the legs of a lying child;
lift up with outstretched legs lower part torso.

A similar reaction is manifested in infants in the first months of life and disappears as they grow older.

Landau

The Landau reaction can be upper or lower, it appears in infants by 4 months. The first appears in the child when he lies on the surface. He rests on his hands, trying to raise his head and body. The lower Landau effect can be observed when the child is in the "swimmer" position. When lifting it and facing the floor, one can observe the arching of the back, raising the head and extension of the limbs.

kerning

In a child lying on his back, bending of the leg in the hip joint or knee is carried out. With a normal Kerning reaction, it will not be possible to immediately straighten the baby's limb.

Babinsky

The reaction is manifested by slight movement and contact of the finger with the outer edge of the sole of the feet in the direction from the foot to the heel.

The kid will react with a fan opening of the toes, bending all the joints on the back of the foot.

Support reflex

When the baby is in vertical position and the contact of the surface of the foot with the support is straightened lower extremities and imitation of a standing posture with the support of an adult. The reaction is typical for infants of the first year, when they reach the age of 8-12 months, children begin to stand on a flat surface on their own.

Automatic walking reflex

The response is also known as the stepping response, which highlights the infant's main response. If you provide the baby with the contact of the feet with the surface and slightly tilt his body forward, then you can observe an imitation of walking. This stepping over of the legs is called the effect of stepping.

Some children at the same time make a kind of crossing at the level of the lower leg. This situation is normal and is increased tone thigh muscles in babies aged 1.5 months.

Bauer

The crawling reflex appears in babies immediately after birth. The child in the position lying on his stomach, when he feels the touch of the palms on the soles of his feet, begins to push off, using the hands of an adult as a support. In some cases, the child is able to move forward a little, so even the smallest children should not be left unattended.

Galanta

With a dashed finger along the spine, the baby bends in the form of an arc, and the head turns to the side irritant effect. It is also considered normal to abduct the legs to the side.

Perez

The reaction is manifested when pressed with a slight movement over the spinous process of the spine. At the same time, the child unbends the body, flexes the limbs and begins to cry. In connection with the negative coloring of the emotions of the baby, checking the functioning of the nervous system using this method is resorted to only as a last resort.

Robinson

This name can be found when it comes to the grasping reflex. When an object hits the area of the baby's palm, the baby immediately clings to it. Even in the first month of life, a child can grasp the diaper so strongly that it can be quite difficult to open the fists. As they grow older, this reaction becomes less pronounced, and as a result, conscious retentions come to replace it.

Emetic

Newborn babies do not have the ability to swallow properly. When the baby chokes, it automatically happens vomiting reflex, while the baby unconsciously protrudes the tongue, which causes a defensive reaction.

Protective

The ability to protect oneself healthy child appears from the first hours of life. The baby laid on his stomach immediately makes a reflex turn of his head, which helps him avoid blocking the supply of oxygen.

Swallowing

When an object enters the baby's mouth, he makes a swallowing movement. This reflex helps the child learn to coordinate their movements. The baby every day acquires the skill of breathing and swallowing. While he is learning to adapt to new conditions, you can observe that he rhythmically inhales and exhales slowly, trying to swallow food between these when feeding.

Spontaneous

The spontaneous reflex is called the Moro or startle reaction. It is observed with an unexpected impact on the surface on both sides of the baby lying on the surface. In response to it, the limbs of the child open and immediately close, producing a “hug” movement.

Table of onset and extinction of reflexes

Assessment of the state of health of the child, the work of his nervous system is carried out on the basis of the presence and severity of various conditional and unconditional reactions. The absence of some of them may indicate violations of intrauterine development or birth trauma. Most of them appear immediately after birth. Some are observed after a few days of life. For example, the Bauer reaction appears on the 3-4th day, Galant on the 5-6th day. Until what age the reflexes should disappear can be seen in the table.

Reflex	Time of disappearance, month
sucking	3-4
Protective	Up to 1.5
Prehensile	3-6
supports	1-2
stepper	1-2
Search	3-4
proboscis	2-3
Babkina	2-3
Bauer	4
Moreau	4
Babinsky	Up to 2 years
Galanta	3-4
Perez	3-4

Features of the development of reflexes in premature babies

By the nature of congenital automatisms, the presence of reflexes and their vivacity after birth, the state of the nervous system of children is assessed. At premature babies a significant part of innate abilities is missing, since the process of brain maturation has not been completed to the end. The earliest manifested oral reactions are present in them, but not all receptors are affected. Toddlers have a unique potential, therefore they are able to recover and catch up with their peers in development in a short time.

How to independently check the presence of reflexes in a child

To independently check the presence of a reflex in a child, it is enough to repeat the actions that cause a similar reaction. Don't get upset if you don't desired result. Perhaps the baby is tired, or the time for the test was chosen poorly. For example, the absence sucking reflex may be due to the fact that the baby is simply not hungry.

It is necessary to check the baby's reactions to stimuli in a warm room, while he must be dry and not feel hungry. Touching the baby must be careful, otherwise the reflexes may be extinguished by the reaction to discomfort.

Causes and signs of weak development of reflexes

It is desirable to study information about what reflexes a newborn should have; in some cases, they may not appear sufficiently.

The reasons for this situation may be the following circumstances:

received birth injuries;
dysfunction of the nervous system;
premature birth of a child;
spinal pathology;
previous asphyxia.

A sign of weakening is the lack of expression or one-sided manifestation of symmetrical reflexes. In some cases, the baby is not ready to respond to the stimulus, for example, if the child does not have a desire to eat, the sucking reflex will not be pronounced.

Symptoms

When anomalies in the development of a child are detected, several parameters of the manifestation of the reflex are analyzed. The following points are to be assessed:

expressiveness;
symmetry;
uniformity of manifestation on each side for symmetrical reactions;
the speed of receiving a response;
manifestation duration.

In this case, the final verdict must be made by the doctor.

Complete absence

The complete absence of a reflex, especially spinal, is a bad sign. The absence of an "automatic step" is observed with paresis, a decrease in muscle tone and cerebral palsy.

Underdevelopment

When examining a baby, the doctor analyzes the symmetry of some reflexes. For example, if a grasping reaction is observed in a baby with only one hand, then this may signal a possible cerebral palsy, cerebral hemorrhages, or paresis. If, when checking the Moro reflex, the child holds the dilution of the hands with only one limb, then this may indicate problems with the clavicle or paresis.

Treatment

Classification and methodology for studying reflexes in newborns involves an analysis of the overall clinical picture.

In the complete absence

The complete absence of reflexes is often the result of birth trauma or intrauterine anomalies. In this case, the content of therapy is determined on an individual basis and depends on the reasons for the lack of reactions and the nature of the pathologies. In most cases, treatment requires inpatient observation and long-term therapy.

With partial malformation

With partial unformed reflexes, the observation of specialized specialists is assigned. Often this situation is observed in children with a syndrome of depression of the nervous system. They have low muscle tone and motor activity. IN severe cases there are problems in the area of sucking movements, so these babies are fed through a tube. Such newborns should not be left in a supine position on the stomach, which is associated with a lack of expression of the protective reflex. Treatment of infants with partial unformed reflexes involves drug therapy, massages and physiotherapy.

Forecasts

The child's body has large reserves that help it recover even in the most difficult situations. With insufficient development of reflexes good result shows A complex approach, involving the appointment of pharmacological preparations, massages and special physiotherapy. At the same time, regularity and constant monitoring by a narrow specialist with the implementation of the recommendations issued is important.

Wise nature initially laid down the main reflexes of newborns, allowing them to adapt to a new worldview without stress. Coming in Big world children are not able to control their body. The brain of the crumbs is not fully formed and has not yet learned to function in such a way as to support all the life systems of a small person.

The control of a tiny organism is carried out with the help of unconditioned reflexes of a newborn, brought to automatism. The primitive centers of the spinal cord and brain that have formed during pregnancy can control them, provided proper development nervous system.

Congenital reflexes are peculiar defensive forces baby, which help him survive in any external conditions. Some reflexes fade within 4 weeks, while others last up to 3-4 months

Determination of the basic reflexes of the newborn

The set of congenital reflexes of newborns can be presented in the form of a table with explanatory additions. We have compiled a table, indicating in it all the reflexes that indicate the full health of the baby. All data are taken from medical sources and correspond to the exact presentation. After examining the table data, you will recognize their name and understand what they show:

Allows you to determine the correct functioning of the nervous system, to establish muscle tone. Important as protection against threats - for example, falls.
sucking	Shows the level of maturity of the child, has a calming effect. Prepares to receive new food.
Prehensile	Reveals the degree of development of the nervous system. Allows you to understand how excitable the child is.
Robinson	Shows tenacity and muscle tone. Leads to the development of fine motor skills. Left from primitive people and is not related to human development.
proboscis	It makes it possible to check the facial and sucking muscles. Reacting to the stimulus, the child stretches his lips with a “proboscis”.
Babkin palmar-oral reflex	The oldest reflex aimed at searching necessary nutrition different ways. Determines the correct development of the entire nervous system.
Spinal automatism of Galant	It reveals birth injuries, shows the degree of functioning of the spinal cord and the state of the central nervous system.
Stepping or automatic walking reflex (Babinski)	Refutes or confirms the presence of cerebral palsy.
Bauer	Serves to check muscle tone and condition of the spinal cord. It is called the crawling reflex.
Kussmaul search reflex	Helps the newborn to find the breast, prepares for a new diet.

How to check reflexes yourself?

This article talks about typical ways to solve your questions, but each case is unique! If you want to know from me how to solve exactly your problem - ask your question. It's fast and free!

After leaving the mother's womb, the child gets to know the world, and you get to know him. For him it extreme conditions, but the baby is armed and fighting for life, using the reflexes of newborns. Knowing their characteristics and physiological responses, you can independently check for their presence in your child. Simple manipulations with the baby will help you understand how healthy your baby is, whether it works protective functions and whether he has developmental problems.

Reflexes to test the nervous system

Moro reflex. Lay the newborn on its back, drop the toy near his head so that it turns out loud noise. Raise the baby by the legs. In both cases, the baby should spread the arms to the side, opening the fists. Having calmed down, he returns his hands to their original position, bending at the elbows and pressing them to the body (assumes the fetal position familiar to him) (see also:). The reaction that appears should not be weak, but clear, with the symmetry of outstretched arms. Disappears by 4-5 months.
Sucking. The process of sucking only outwardly seems easy, and to make it work, the coordinated work of five pairs of nerves of the skull is necessary. The test shows the degree of maturity of the newborn. Bring the breast to the baby's mouth or touch the pacifier to the cheek. The baby will turn his head to the object, feeling the nipple or pacifier, will make rhythmic swallowing movements with his lips, mouth, tongue. Please note that with signs of cerebral palsy, the child does not just turn his head, but raises it sharply. It is very important that sucking automatism be satisfied. Sucking calms the baby emotionally. If the baby does not satisfy the sucking need through the chest, he begins to pull any objects into his mouth. Weakening of reactions occurs after 1 year, by 1.5 years they disappear.
Proboscis. Helps identify pathological changes brain. After laying the newborn on his back, lightly touch with a finger or nipple upper lip babies. The child reacts by stretching his lips into a “tube”. The presence of a reflex is an indicator of the correct contraction of the circular muscle of the mouth. Fades away by 2-3 months. If there is no reaction, see a doctor.
Palmar-oral automatism of Babkin. Symmetry in movements is checked. Gently press your hand on the center of the baby's palm. The child opens his mouth and tries to raise his head in your direction. If at the time of testing the child is hungry, the reaction will be pronounced. The absence of a reflex or its non-manifestation for three months indicates disturbances in the functioning of the nervous system.

The Moro reflex is very important for determining the health of the child - if the reflex is incomplete, this may be due to congenital cardiovascular diseases.

Reflexes to test muscle tone

Spinal Galant reflex. Lay the baby on the tummy, gently run your finger along the left side of the spine, not bringing the finger to the vertebrae by 1 cm. The baby will react by arching the back in the opposite direction and bending the left leg. Swiping across right side, the child arches to the left and bends the right leg. Passes to half a year.
The grasping and automatism of Robinson. Two similar tests aimed at checking the nervous system and muscle tone. When testing grasping automatism, put your forefinger in the palm of a baby. The child should firmly grasp it, holding it in a fist. To test Robinson's automatism, simply touch the baby's palm, causing a hook reaction. A hungry baby grabs a finger so that it is difficult to unclench his fist. The automatism of grasping goes away by 4 months. Growing up, the child will move from grasping to conscious action with objects, their correct holding and grasping.
Babinski's automatic walking reflex or stepping. Take the baby under the armpits, lift it vertically so that it reaches the floor or other surface with your toes. Tilt it forward a little and see if the baby is trying to step over with his legs, imitating walking up the stairs. Some babies can cross their legs at the shins - this is also normal reaction, it lasts until the age of 1.5 months.
Peres reflex. For a competent check, you need to run your finger along the vertebrae, starting from the coccyx and bringing your finger to the neck. A sharp cry, bending of the arms and legs, lifting the pelvis is a normal reaction. We check muscle tone. Leaves by 3-4 months.
Bauer reflex. Automatic action showing the ability of the newborn to crawl. Laying the baby on his stomach, press your palm to his foot. The child, feeling the support, will try to push off from it, making crawling movements with the legs. The first manifestation of crawling automatism falls on the 4-5th day after birth, the reaction disappears by 4 months. You can read about how to develop crawling in our other materials.

Robinson's innate automatism is loved by photographers when creating family photo shoots with children. Toddlers grab an adult's finger so hard that it can be difficult to unclench the fist.

Kussmaul's search automatism

The reflex is checked in the mouth area and is similar in reaction to sucking and palmar-mouth automatism. It requires close attention during its implementation. Carefully, almost without touching, touch the corners of the baby's lips. The baby should start looking for an irritant that hints at an object of nutrition - he is looking for the mother's breast. Underlip the baby descends and stretches along with the tongue towards your finger. Make sure that your finger does not touch the lips, as this manipulation is testing a completely different reflex. Remains up to 3-5 months, then disappears. Important: if the reflex does not go away by 3-4 months, there are reasons for diagnosing a brain anomaly.

Correctly checking the basic reflexes of newborns on your own will help you with a video in which everything is shown clearly, on specific child. Carry out your manipulations carefully and carefully. Remember about positive attitude and try not to scare your treasure.

If the baby does not like your touch, he may turn away from you, be capricious, upset and cry. Start testing when the baby has good mood. Combine checks with play and communication, conduct them unobtrusively, observing the reaction of the child.

The pediatrician checks the newborn in the same way. Detecting the absence or slowing of the reaction, the doctor may prescribe an examination by a neurologist. The unconditional automatism of a newborn is a programmed by nature indicator of the correct operation of all body systems, the main of which is the nervous system. If there is no reaction to at least one item in the set of unconditioned reflexes, contact a specialist immediately. Checking innate reflexes is very important for early diagnosis diseases and should be carried out in a timely manner.

How is the neonatal period determined, what is its duration? It is scientifically substantiated that this period lasts 28 days, at this time the primary adaptation of the child to the environment takes place. The reflexes of the newborn help the adaptation, these are the inherent mechanisms that allow the baby to perform their first (yet unconscious) actions.

Types of reflexes - classification

There are 2 types of reflexes - conditional and unconditional, in infancy only unconditional ones work, laid down from birth. Conditional ones appear later, on the basis of experience.

In total, 15 unconditioned reflexes of newborns are distinguished, each of them has its own purpose. Some appear and disappear immediately, others fade slowly, and still others remain forever.

There are several groups of basic reflexes of newborns:

Aimed at ensuring general life activity (breathing, swallowing, sucking, spinal motor automatisms).
Providing safety for the child's body when exposed to external stimuli.
"Temporary", which work to maintain a single process. For example, there is a reflex breath holding, in order for the child to birth canal was able to move forward.

Table of basic reflexes of newborns by months

oral reflexes

From the very first minutes of life small organism needs food. No one teaches to suck milk from the breast and swallow the baby, everything is based on reflex activity.

Sucking reflex The baby has it since birth. Thanks to him, the baby is able to grasp the nipple of the breast or the pacifier with his lips and makes rhythmic sucking movements. The reflex is strongly pronounced up to a year, it is natural for the appearance of the main teeth, with the help of which sucking is replaced by chewing.

Up to 3 years, it remains mild. The intensity of sucking signals the degree of hunger of the baby, if the child is full, then the sucking becomes weaker, it is expressed stronger towards the meal. The constant weakness of the sucking reflex is due to many reasons, the establishment of which occurs with the help of a doctor.

Swallowing reflex promotes swallowing of the received food. It is caused by the work of the medulla oblongata and persists for life.

proboscis reflex it persists for a shorter time - by two to three months it disappears. Touching a finger or an object to the baby's lips causes the mouth to curl into a tube, resembling a small trunk.

Babkin's reflex, it is also called palmar-oral. If you lightly press both palms of the child, then the baby slightly opens his mouth. By three months, the reaction fades away, after which it disappears completely.

Search reflex (Kussmaul) . An attempt to touch the cheek at the corner of the mouth (very lightly) leads to a search for a stimulus, that is, a search for food. After three months the reflex passes, the baby determines the source of food visually. When checking it, you should not touch the lips of the crumbs directly, otherwise you will get a proboscis reflex.

Spinal automatisms

spinal reflexes newborns characterize the infant's muscular apparatus and its condition.

defensive reflex is found in turning the head when laying the crumbs on the stomach. In this way, the child opens air access to Airways. With damage to the central nervous system, this reflex is usually absent.

Grasping (monkey) reflex - the ability to firmly grasp and hold the fingers of an adult placed in the palms of an infant. Raising the fingers is another similar Robinson reflex. Weakening occurs by four months.

- this is when, when stroking the soles, the fingers open in a fan-shaped way, and the feet bend from the back.

Reflexes of the newborn - plantar reflex (Babinsky)

This reflex is preserved up to two years, the symmetry of the reaction and energy is an indicator for evaluating the child.

Moro reflex (hugs) - a reaction consisting of two phases that occurs in response to noise or knocking.

At first, the baby spreads his arms in different sides and unclenches his fingers, while straightening his legs. Then the arms and legs return to their original position, resembling a hug. This reflex is observed up to five months. An incomplete Moro reflex or its asymmetry is manifested in lesions of the nervous system.

Kernig's reflex observed when it is not possible to unclench hip joint after bending. Upon reaching four months disappears completely.

Automatic walking reflex tested with armpit support and a slight forward lean. The baby takes steps without accompanying them with hand movements. Normally, the baby should lean on the entire foot and walk without clinging.

If the legs are slightly crossed, then this is considered acceptable in the first 1.5 months. The ability to walk independently is a learned skill complex work cerebral cortex, develops by 1 year. If "automatic gait" remains for a long time, then this may be a manifestation of CNS damage.

Support reflex visible when the baby, holding, is placed on a hard surface. First he pushes his feet away, then he flattens out, pressing his tiny soles firmly against the ground. During the entire month and a half, the support and walking reflexes are well expressed.

Crawling reflex (Bauer) - it is called spontaneous crawling, this happens when the baby is placed on the stomach or back. The movements are intensified if you put your palm on the soles of the child, the baby can even move forward. There is a reflex for 3-4 days, and extinction for third fourth month. warning sign it is considered a violation of symmetry or the preservation of creeping movements up to six months - a year.

Reflex Galant called the response of the spinal area to an external stimulus. If you move your finger along the back, then the child will arch the back and straighten the leg from the side of impact.

Postural reflexes (automatisms)

The group of these reflexes is based on the redistribution of muscle tone as motor development child. While the baby is not yet able to hold his head, cannot sit, walk and stand, his muscles must be regulated. The medulla oblongata and, subsequently, the midbrain are responsible for regulation.

Magnus-Klein reflex (asymmetric tonic neck) - the baby takes the "swordsman's pose" if his head is turned on its side while the little one is on his back. That is, the limbs where the face turns are unbent, and the opposite ones are bent.

Name	How to stimulate	Response to stimulus	Appearance (age)	Disappearance (age)	Reasons for deviations
Search	cheek stroking	Turning the head to the stimulus, opening the mouth	From birth	3-4 months (in sleep up to 12 months)	Lethargy, depression of the nervous system. cerebral palsy
sucking	Touching lips or mouth	Sucking movements	From birth	4 months (in sleep up to 7 months)	The satiated one reacts badly. Prematurity, CNS depression
Cervical tonic ("swordsman")	While the baby is on his back, turn his head to the side	Straightening the arms and legs from the side of the turned head; on the opposite side, the arm and leg are bent	Birth - 2 months	4-6 month	Inability to get out of this state or persistence from 6 months - violations of motor neurons
Prehensile	Put your finger in the child's hand	Firm grasping of the fingers with both hands	From birth	3-6 month	CNS lesions
Walking reflex	Underarm support, slight forward lean. Feet must touch the surface	Similarity of steps, alternating movements of the legs	From birth	2-4 month	Absence: cerebral palsy, paralysis of the legs, depression of the child
Reflex Moro (hugs)	Sudden sound or pop when the baby is lying on its back	Symmetrical opening of the arms and straightening of the legs, after a few seconds wrapping your arms around yourself	From birth	Up to 4 months	Paralysis or fracture of the clavicle leads to asymmetry, absence or long action - disorders of brain structures
plantar reflex	Pressing on the toes	Symmetrical finger curl	From birth	4-8 month	cerebral palsy, brain damage
Babinski's reflex	Run along the sole to the fingers from the heel	Finger unclenching fan-shaped	From birth	About a year	cerebral palsy, CNS lesions

Checking the severity of reflexes is carried out with the help of a neurologist and a pediatrician, they are able to determine how well the functions of the infant's nervous system work.

What affects the untimely appearance of reflexes in newborns?

The reasons are completely different, ranging from trauma during childbirth, ending with an individual reaction to medical preparations. Spinal or oral reflexes of the newborn are mild in case of prematurity or mild asphyxia.

It is not always necessary to sound the alarm if sucking and searching behavior is weakly expressed, perhaps the baby is just full, then he does not show strong reflex activity. But before feeding, on the contrary, sucking and searching are intensified.

If the reflexes of the newborn are not observed at all, then this is an occasion for immediate qualified medical care. Most important features life support may suffer if the baby is not maintained in time. There can be several reasons: severe malformations of intrauterine development, severe asphyxia, injuries sustained during childbirth.

Of course, parents should be aware of congenital reflexes, but only an experienced neonatologist or pediatrician can professionally assess the state of health of a child. Deviations from the norm are significant and not very, with minor violations, the doctor will prescribe treatment or special procedures. If the deviations are strong, then the doctor will help to understand the reasons, and will be able to accept emergency measures so that the baby is not in danger.

Any strange manifestation of the child's behavior requires heightened attention because its successful adaptation to the world depends on it. The reflexes of a newborn are the care of nature itself so that the baby can feel as comfortable as possible.

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