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Movement and daily function

Spasticity

Muscles that are stiff and resist being moved, sometimes with sudden tightening.

What it means

Muscle tone is normally adjusted without thinking about it. When the nerve signals that damp it down are affected, tone stays too high, and a limb feels tight or springy to move. It can make movement harder than weakness alone would.

Why you might hear it

A physiotherapist may use it when explaining stretches.
It is asked about routinely at clinic visits.

What it is not

Not the same as a cramp, which is a sudden painful contraction that passes.

People who may help

Where Compass goes into this

About this explanation

These are plain explanations of words you may come across, not advice about your own situation. Where a word matters to a decision, the question pages go into it properly, and your own team is the place to take it.