Landau reflex or Landau reaction refers to a

reflex In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus. Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...

seen in infants when held horizontally in the air in the

prone position Prone position () is a body position in which the person lies flat with the chest down and the back up. In anatomical terms of location, the dorsal side is up, and the ventral side is down. The supine position is the 180° contrast. Etymolog ...

. It emerges 3 months after birth and lasts until up to 12 months to 24 months of age. A normal response of

infant An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...

s when held in a horizontal prone position is to maintain a convex arc with the head raised and the legs slightly flexed. It is poor in those with

floppy infant syndrome Hypotonia is a state of low muscle tone (the amount of tension or resistance to stretch in a muscle), often involving reduced muscle strength. Hypotonia is not a specific medical disorder, but a potential manifestation of many different diseases a ...

and exaggerated in hypertonic and opisthotonic infants.

Interpretation

An abnormal Landau reflex may indicate hypotonia or hypertonia and may indicate a motor development issue.

References

Reflexes Pediatrics {{Pediatrics-stub