Hypotonia

Hypotonia is decreased muscle tone: reduced resistance when a limb is moved passively. Weakness is a reduced ability to generate force. The two often occur together but are not the same thing. One infant may feel floppy yet move well spontaneously, while another has both low tone and marked weakness. Describe exactly what you observe rather than recording "floppy" as if it were a diagnosis. New low tone matters most in infants and young children, because it can change breathing, feeding and handling decisions. A new change in tone at any age still needs evaluation. A hypotonic infant feels like a "rag doll" when held. The infant tends to rest with the elbows and knees loosely extended, may have poor head control with the head falling forward, backward or to the side, and may slip through the hands when lifted under the arms. Most infants hold the head steady without support while being held by 4 months of age, so persistent head lag beyond that age is a finding to document and report to the physician or NP before the...