Asterixis (also called the flapping tremor, or liver flap) is a tremor of the wrist when the wrist is extended, sometimes said to resemble a bird flapping its wings. This motor disorder is characterized by jerking movements (as of the outstretched hands) and is associated with various encephalopathies due especially to faulty metabolism. The term derives from the Greek a, "not" and sterixis, "fixed position".