Bastian-Bruns sign
Encyclopedia
The Bastian-Bruns sign, or Bastian-Bruns law, is the loss of tone
and deep tendon reflexes
in the lower limbs in the presence of complete transection of the spinal cord
above the level of the lumbar enlargement
.
The sign was named after Henry Charlton Bastian
and Ludwig Bruns
.
Muscle tone
In physiology, medicine, and anatomy, muscle tone is the continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles, or the muscle’s resistance to passive stretch during resting state. It helps maintain posture, and it declines during REM sleep.-Purpose:Unconscious nerve impulses maintain the...
and deep tendon reflexes
Reflex
A reflex action, also known as a reflex, is an involuntary and nearly instantaneous movement in response to a stimulus. A true reflex is a behavior which is mediated via the reflex arc; this does not apply to casual uses of the term 'reflex'.-See also:...
in the lower limbs in the presence of complete transection of the spinal cord
Spinal cord
The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system...
above the level of the lumbar enlargement
Lumbar enlargement
The lumbar enlargement gives attachment to the nerves which supply the lower limbs.It commences about the level of T11, and reaches its maximum circumference, of about 33 mm., at L1 , below which it tapers rapidly into the conus medullaris.An analogous region for the upper limbs exists at the...
.
The sign was named after Henry Charlton Bastian
Henry Charlton Bastian
Henry Charlton Bastian was an English physiologist and neurologist. Fellow of Royal Society in 1868.Bastian graduated in 1861 at the University of London....
and Ludwig Bruns
Ludwig Bruns
Ludwig Bruns was a German neurologist who was a native of Hanover. He studied medicine in Göttingen and Munich, receiving his doctorate in 1882. Subsequently, he was an assistant to Eduard Hitzig at the insane asylum in Nietleben as well as at the psychiatric and nerve clinic in Halle...
.