SENSORY DYSFUNCTIONS
DYSFUNCTIONS Tactile dysfunction: Through touch, you have the ability to receive and interpret stimuli through skin contact; theories have been formed that the tactile system develops even before birth; the sense of touch is important in the development of body awareness and its operation is divided into two different systems: • The discrimination system: Provides information on the size, shape and texture of objects in the environment. • The protective system: Provides information about how the person is touched; that is, soft, deep pressure, temperature or pain, being responsible for the body automatically withdrawing from that touch that seems harmful. When there is tactile dysfunction, there may be hypo sensitivity or hyper sensitivity to touch, or it may have poor tactile discrimination; A hypo-sensitive person may not be aware of being touched or may not react to painful experiences such as cuts, blows or burns, among others. A hypersensitive person, on the other hand, may appear aggressive towards others, being able to avoid, for example, dirt, sand or artistic projects or present difficulties completing a task due to the need to protect themselves with the fear of coming tactile input, which is called tactile defensiveness; A visually impaired person, for example, might appear defensive tactilely, so it is necessary to determine if the tactile input is an overload on a sensory system or if the child has simply been surprised and unprepared for such tactile input. Work should be done to provide tactile stimulation, improve tolerance to the stimulus, and improve discrimination. Main features: • Hypersensitivity or hypo sensitivity. • Lack of distinction for various sensations or stimuli. • Lack of organization for the recognition of shapes, weights or textures. • Fear of different sensations or tactile inputs. • Intolerance or aversion to certain tactile stimuli. Vestibular dysfunction: The receptors of the vestibular system are located in the inner ear and they interpret the effects of gravity on the body through movements and position of the head; These sensory receptors in the inner ear send messages to higher levels of the brain for processing. When there is dysfunction in the vestibular system, the development of good balance, spatial awareness, proximal stability, (ability to stabilize the shoulder and hip joints) and uniformity in motor control are compromised; Studies further suggest that the vestibular system contributes to the ability to pay attention to a task. Proper stimulation of this system can provide a calming effect and prepare the brain to focus its attention; Immature vestibular systems can react in two ways: • Extreme sensitivity to any physical activity: These people do not tolerate carrying out activities that involve body movements, showing clumsiness or fear in carrying it out. • Lack of vestibular information processing: They never seem dizzy and enjoy the activities that provide vestibular stimulation, it seems that the switch to turn them off did not exist. There are those who have absence of some functions due to other disabilities and perform stereotyped movements or for example continuously sway or turn in the same place to stimulate themselves, which can be interpreted as a nervous system that needs vestibular stimulation and when information is provided Sensory appropriate, this behavior tends to decrease. Main features • Unbalance. • Loss of balance. • General instability. • Lack of attention. • Deconcentration. • Clumsiness or lack of interest in carrying out physical activities. • Stereotyped movements. • Restlessness. Gravitational insecurity: It is a feeling of discomfort in relation to the force of gravity; an individual may feel frightened or disoriented in positions other than normal standing with their feet on the floor; this difficulty is also related to the function of the vestibular system and can be observed in movement activities generally or more specifically when using a specialized rocking chair. For children with gravitational insecurity, movement activities can be frightening and can feel something similar to what anyone would experience if they were on the edge of a building terrace leaning forward. Work must be done to improve balance, spatial awareness, and the ability to recover oneself when balance is lost. Main features: • Vertigo. • Lack of orientation. • Fear of balancing. Frequent dizziness • Loss of balance. Muscle tone: The development of normal muscle tone is a very important element in the acquisition of movement skills; People with sensory integration dysfunctions typically exhibit abnormal muscle tone and tend to be flabby, easily tired, and generally have low muscle tone, known as hypotonia. On the other hand, there may be those who are constantly on the move, but cannot stop, hold, and stabilize their bodies in a position that supports their weight. Main features: • Flaccidity. • General tiredness. • Slow movements. • Difficulty holding objects. • Difficulty staying upright. • Problems with bearing weight. Bilateral coordination: It is the ability to coordinate both sides of the body, as well as to cross the intermediate line; Coordination of both sides of the body is necessary for both general and fine motor skills, and this skill begins to develop when a baby transfers objects from one hand to the other or hits objects against each other. First, our bodies learn to perform activities that involve both sides working together like crawling, walking among others and later, we do not specialize with each side, being responsible for a different part of the tasks such as when one hand stabilizes a bottle and the other unscrews the cap. A child with dysfunctions in bilateral coordination may have difficulties using one hand to stabilize a project and the other hand to carry it out; You can avoid crossing the middle line of your body and changing hands frequently due to the frustration of being unable to complete the task. Good bilateral coordination will be essential for tasks such as brushing toothpaste or using scissors. It should work in order to integrate both sides of the body and promote bilateral movement in a coordinated manner. Main features: • Lack of coordination. • Confusion between right and left. • Impossibility to carry out independent movements. • Disorientation. • Constant movement changes when performing a task. Motor planning: It is the ability of the brain to separate the small components necessary to carry out any movement; This ability can be observed in carrying out new and unfamiliar activities. Children with difficulties in motor planning transfer these skills with great difficulty or simply do not, it may take time to start a task, because they have no idea where to start; They may be rushing through an activity in a disorderly way because they may not have been able to identify specific steps in the activity. Work should be done to promote simple motor planning. Main features: • Confusion in carrying out tasks. • Difficulty or lack of initiative to manipulate objects. • Lack of sequencing in performing steps. • Unsafety. General and fine motor coordination: Some children with sensory integration deficits may present delays in their general and fine motor skills and frequently their motor development may seem slow, stiff and not very skillful and although in general the sensory integration approach does not contemplate activities specific for motor and fine development, the rest of the planned activities must involve motor components; As the nervous system improves its ability to process sensory information, movement naturally becomes more uniform and refined. Main features: • Lack of static and dynamic balance. • Lack of coordination or disharmonization in movements. • Difficulties in grasping, screwing, threading, among others. • Difficulty manipulating objects. Visual dysfunction: Some children who have dysfunctions in sensory integration may also manifest difficulties in the area of visual perception, reflecting in a variety of ways, which may include poor visual tracking, protruding and uncoordinated eye movements, difficulty focusing on an object still, poor perception of depth or poor coordination between hands and eyes. Main features: • Lack of attention. • Lost look. • Difficulty viewing objects at a fixed point. • Lack of calculation when grasping objects or walking. • Difficulties for observation.