Synonyms
Increased tone; Stiffness
Definition
Rigidity, also called increased muscle tone, means stiffness or inflexibility of the muscles. In rigidity, the muscle tone of an affected limb is always stiff and does not relax, sometimes resulting in a decreased range of motion. Rigidity is distinguished from spasticity, which is an increase in muscle tone present when the muscle is rapidly stretched. Rigidity with superimposed tremor is called cogwheel rigidity because of the ratchety quality of the limb tone when moved around a joint. Cogwheel rigidity is a characteristic motor feature of Parkinson’s disease. Increased rigidity may result in decreased arm swing when walking and frozen shoulder, which can also be manifestations of Parkinson’s disease.
Cross-References
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences and Readings
Fahn, S., & Jankovic, J. (Eds.). (2007). Parkinsonism: Clinical features and diagnosis. In Movement disorders (pp. 79–100). Philadelphia: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this entry
Cite this entry
Hohler, A.D., de Leon, M.P. (2018). Rigidity. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_480
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_480
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-57110-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-57111-9
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences