What Is Somatic Movement Disorder?

Somatic movement refers to both voluntary and involuntary movement of the body. The primary cause of movement disorders is a neurological dysfunction. There is no cure, but a proper diagnosis allows a patient to receive proper treatment and improve his way of life.

Somatic vs. Autonomic Nervous System

• The peripheral nervous system refers to the nerves that connect the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body. It consists of two major divisions: the somatic and the autonomic. The somatic nervous system involves all nerves that control muscles and external sensory receptors. The ability to move and feel things is facilitated by the somatic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system controls internal organs, such as the heart, intestines, bladder and uterus. The autonomic system is subdivided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic. The sympathetic system is what creates the fight or flight instinct. The parasympathetic offers a counterbalance, enabling relaxation.

Two Main Types of Movement Disorder

• Because the somatic system controls muscle movements, any movement disorder may be categorized as a somatic movement disorder. There are two types of movement disorders: hyperkinetic and hypokinetic. Hyperkinetic includes involuntary movement, such as shaking and tremors. Hypokinetic involves abnormally slow, intentional movement and motor activity. Syptoms of hypokinetic movement include a rigid, stone-like face and decreased limb motion during walking.

Parkinson's Disease

• Parkinson’s disease is one of the most common movement disorders. It is a chronic disease which involves the degeneration of the nervous system, resulting in tremors, rigidity, slow movement, poor balance and difficulty walking. Because it causes intentional movement to become slow and rigid, Parkinson’s disease may be classified as a hypokinetic disorder. Patients have difficulty completing movements due to the delayed transmission of signals from the brain to the skeletal muscles. The delay in signals occurs when levels of a certain brain chemical—dopamine—decrease.

Other Movement Disorders

• A movement disorder is a neurogical condition that affects the spead, fluency and quality of movement. Movement disorders include ataxia (lack of coordination), dystonia (involuntary movement and prolonged muscle contraction), Huntington’s disease, multiple system atrophies, myoclonus, progressive supranuclear palsy, restless leg syndrome, tics (involuntary muscle contractions), Tourett’e syndrome and Wilson’s disease.

Diagnosis

• In order to determine if you have a movement disorder, you must undergo some kind of brain imaging, such as magnetic resonance imaging or positron emission tomography.

Treatment

• Because there is no cure for movement disorders, treatments offered may only control symptoms. According to the Mayo Clinic, treatment for movement disorders include drug therapies, botulinum toxin injections and deep brain stimulation. Deep brain stimulation involves implantation of a device to control tremors. In botulinum toxin injections, the same bacteria that causes botulism (a severe form of food poisoning) is used in small amounts as a muscle relaxing agent.