Define Golgi Tendon

Golgi tendon organs are located in the tendons of muscles and are responsible for preventing the muscle from contracting too much.

• The purpose of golgi tendon organs is to prevent muscles from contracting too much.

Tendons

• A tendon attaches a muscle to a bone. A golgi tendon organ is a tiny group of nerve endings located in the tendon.

Proprioceptors

• The golgi tendon organ is a proprioceptor. Proprioceptors are nerve endings that send information about what is happening in your muscles and joints to the body's central nervous system. This information is what gives you perception of your body position and movement.

What the Golgi Tendon Organ Does

• When a contracting muscle causes tension on its tendon, the golgi tendon organ senses how much the tension is changing and how fast the tension is changing and sends signals to the nervous system with this information.

Lengthening Reaction

• When the nervous system detects that the tension caused by the muscle contraction exceeds a certain level, it triggers the lengthening reaction, which stops the muscle from contracting and causes it to relax.

Purpose

• The purpose of the golgi tendon organ and the lengthening reaction is to help protect the muscles, tendons and ligaments from injury.