Question

A 37-year-old comatose woman arrives at the emergency room. paramedics say her husband found her unconscious at home. her past medical history consists of type 1 diabetes for which she takes insulin. in the ambulance the paramedics obtained a glucose check and determined she was severely hypoglycemic. they began a dextrose saline infusion and intubated her to protect her airway. despite their efforts she is posturing in the emergency room with her arms straight at her side and her jaw clenched. her legs are also straight and her feet are plantar flexed. what type of posturing is she showing?

Answer 1

The type of posturing she is showing is called "Decerebrate rigidity." This posturing sometimes occurs in comatose patients.

Answer 2

The correct answer is decerebrate posturing.

Explanation:

The decerebrate posturing is an unusual posture of the body, which comprises the legs and arms being held straight out, the neck and the head being bowed backward, and the toes being pointed downward. The muscles are held rigidly and are tightened. This kind of posturing generally signifies that there has been extreme impairment to the brain. Decerebrate rigidity is a result of the lesion in the midbrain or the pons.