Hypotonia

What is Hypotonia?

Hypotonia, or low muscle tone as it is often known, reduces the strength and tone of the muscle. This in turn impacts the movement ability, physical strength, and flexibility of an individual with the symptom. In babies, it may present as floppy baby syndrome and is usually detected at birth or soon after.
Hypotonia may be the result of a genetic syndrome. It may also be caused by damage to the brain, spine, or any of the nerves and muscles of the body. Ongoing research into the symptom suggests it may also be caused by environmental factors in a number of cases.

Symptoms may affect multiple parts of the body. Understanding which part of the body a symptom affects can help us to better understand the potential underlying causes of a symptom, including a rare disease or genetic syndrome.

The muscular system contains three muscle types: cardiac, smooth, and skeletal.

The muscular system affects multiple parts and functions of the body including movement, balance, stability and posture, circulation, respiration, digestion, urination, and childbirth.

Symptoms affecting the muscles can not for the most part be seen with the naked eye. Diagnosing a muscle-related symptom may involve different tests and assessments, both subjective and objective.

Symptoms relating to the muscles may affect their function and tone. They may also affect the structure of the muscles, regardless of how big or small (macro and/or microscopically) this change in the structure might be.

What should I do next?

In some instances, low muscle tone may be one of the features of a rare disease or genetic syndrome. To find out if someone with Hypotonia, may be due to a genetic syndrome, it is important to have a consultation and evaluation with a clinical genetic specialist. Specialists may also suggest specific genetic testing or other types of tests to help reach a diagnosis. FDNA’s AI technology can help speed up the diagnostic process by analyzing facial features and other health information.

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Synonyms:
Hypotonicity, hypotension, hypotonus, hypotony.
Related syndromes:

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