Chapter 4. Movements and Movement Disorders

There are two main types of movements:

• involuntary;
• voluntary.

The involuntary movements include simple automatic movements driven by the segmental apparatus of the spinal cord and brainstem according to the type of a simple reflex act. Voluntary purposeful movements are acts of motor behavior of a person. Special voluntary movements (behavioral, professional, etc.) occur with the leading participation of the cerebral cortex, as well as the extrapyramidal system and the segmental apparatus of the spinal cord. In humans and higher animals, voluntary movements are associated with a pyramidal system consisting of two neurons, i.e., central and peripheral.