Sensory Development Topics Flashcards
Define sensation
process which sensory receptors receive and route info to the spinal levels and to higher CNS levels
Define perception
integration of sensation, memory, through and CNS refinement that provides a context for interaction with the environment; attributing meaning to sensory info- “awareness”
Put the following senses in order according to when they develop in utero (earliest to latest): taste, touch, proprioception, smell, hearing, vision, motion (vestibular)
(first developed)- 1) touch, 2) Motion (vestib), 3) Smell, 4) Hearing, 5) Vision, 6) Taste, 7) proprioception
Define the mechanics of sensory reception, to include peripheral reception, transduction, adaptation, and threshold.
Peripheral reception-information processing involves cognition and neural maturation
transduction- altering environmental stimuli into neural energy (sound waves into electrical impulse)
Adaptation- receptors in most systems diminish in responsiveness following repeated stimuli (Galveston smell)
Threshold- minimum amount of stimuli needed to elicit a response (changes over time, diff per person, difference in pain tolerance)
What state of awareness is the best (ideal) for testing an infant?
Alert? Infant does not lack behavioral responses, motor or sensory deficits, attention, or is not fatigued.
Describe/Define habituation and conditioning.
Habituation: response ecrement with repeated presentation of same stimulus (shut out a stim like ticking clock, fan noise, people).
Conditioning: child begins to suck when placed In familiar feeding position.
(*remember adaptation is receptor level- like adapting to the Galveston smell- we don’t smell it anymore- formaldehyde is immune:P )
Describe/Define haptic perception and stereognosis; find a YouTube video demonstrating this.
HP-ability to gain information about an object through manipulation
Stereognosis- can recognize an object in your hand. (not reliable for <2 year olds).
List at least 3 intervention techniques used by PTs that depend on an intact somatic sensory system.
Brushing, Tapping or maintained pressure, Stroking, Vibration, Icing, Neural warmth
Describe/summarize the vestibular system and its receptors; list at least 3 intervention techniques that depend on an intact vestibular system.
awarenessof skeletal movement, position in space, alignment and equilibrium. Kinesthesia- sense of body motion. Muscle spindle- skeletal muscle; limb position. Golgi Tendon oragan-tendons- tension in tendon of contracting muscle.
Proprioceptor in inner ear- completely myelinated at birth; replays input about body’s relationship to gravity, head position, and head movement. Influences postural tone, balance and visual gaze.
Receptors: semicircular canals (angular head movment in any plane), Utricle and saccule (gravity detection), Nystagmus (involuntary eye movement to rotary movement).
Intervention: static posture or dynamic movement: slow rocking; fast irregular motion, inverted positioning. (Decrease vs increase arousal and tonal responses).
Describe/summarize the auditory sense and its importance in PT intervention.
possible after 24 weeks gestation- chronic ear infections may have gross motor delay. Auditory myelination not complete until 4-5 years of age. Perception of outside world. PT intervention: arousal/relaxation, emotion, learning. We learn with 80-85% dependence on vision.
Describe the visual system, and provide an explanation of macula, rods, cones, and fovea.
allows for discrimination of all visual stim, interconnectd with vestib, proproceptive, motor systems; influences emotion, behavior and learning. Eye (organ of sight); Optic N. impulse from retina to thalamus to optic cortex in occipital lobe. 3 months-2 years our binocular vision develops from monocular.
Macula- concentration of receptors (rods and cones)
rods- react to varying light intensities (shades of grey)
cones- react to higher stimulus levels and react to colors
fovea- center of macula; only cones are concentrated here; similar to an adult by 4 months.
Describe the visual concepts/abilities of tracking, scanning, accommodation, figure-ground perception, depth perception and visual closure
tracking-present at birth (matures more at 6 months)- visual pursuit of object that crosses in front of the eye
scanning-moving from outside to inside of an object (newborns look at ouside of face; older infants move to look at inside face).
Accommodation-changes shape of lens; brings objects from distance into focus (begina at 1 month and improves over time)
figure-ground perception- what do you see? Vase or faces kissing; Figure (white)/ ground black)
depth perception- improves when crawling/creeping- visual cliff studies
visual closure-discern a shape if you only see part of it.
List/explain at least 3 intervention strategies used by PTs that depend on an intact visual system.
colors- dark/cool increase relaxation/ decrease tone
bright/hot colors increase arousal and tone
visual cueing-increases resting tone, effort, ROM, postural stability, and/or function in position.
Describe the olfactory system and explain a way it could be used to impact arousal or relaxation.
detection of chemical events that provide smell info. Can arouse, relax, or change mood. Used in conjunction with feeding. (doesn’t go through thalamus). Vanilla maybe relaxing.
Describe the gustatory system and explain how it could be used to impact arousal or relaxation.
taste before birth- taste buds reach maturity at 13 weeks GA. 4 primary tastes which can be relaxing, arousing, facilitory to oral motor function or elicit postural responses.
