Medical Dictionary

Moro reflex

noun \ ˈmȯr-ō- \

medical Definition of Moro reflex

: a reflex reaction of infants upon being startled (as by a loud noise or a bright light) that is characterized by extension of the arms and legs away from the body and to the side and then by drawing them together as if in an embrace

Biographical Note for moro reflex

Moro, Ernst (1874–1951), German pediatrician. Moro is remembered for his isolation of a bacterium of the genus Lactobacillus (L. acidophilus) in 1900 and for his introduction of a percutaneous tuberculin reaction as a diagnostic test in 1908. The characteristic reflex reaction of young infants to a sudden startling stimulus is named in his honor.