The golgi tendon organ

Most accounts of muscle receptors and their contribution to the control of posture and movement have tended to focus on the role played by muscle spindles. The tendon organ, as ubiquitous as muscle spindles, and nearly as common in most muscles, has often tended to be neglected. In two recent reviews of the structure and physiology of muscle receptors^1,9, tendon organs were considered in detail. However, reports published since then make it necessary to reappraise some of the established views. Uwe Proske's aim in this article is to examine the known facts, and try to incorporate them in a model which takes into account the new findings.