Spinal Tracts: Ascending And Descending Tracts Flashcards
What are the ascending tracts of the spinal cord?
Responsible for sensory information. Divided into the conscious sensory tracts and the unconscious sensory tracts.
What is the role of the anterior spinothalamic tract?
Crude touch and pressure.
What is the role of the lateral spinothalamic tract?
Pain and temperature.
What is the role of the dorsal column tract?
Fine touch, propioception and vibration.
What is the significance of the fasiculus gracilis?
Dorsal column pathway below T6 for the lower limbs.
What is the significance of the fasiculus cuneatus?
Dorsal column pathway above T6 for the upper limbs.
What are the unconscious sensory tracts?
Spino-cerebellar
Spino-tectal
Spino-olivary
Spino-reticular
What is the role of the spino-olivary tract?
Transmit propioceptive information to the inferior olivary nucleus, for balance.
What is the role of the spino-cerebellar tract?
Unconscious propioceptive information from the muscle spindles and Golgi Tendon to the cerebellum.
What is the role of the spino-reticular tract ?
Provides information to reticular formation for consciousness, awareness and emotional response to pain.
What is the role of the spino-tectal tract?
Sensory information to transmit to the superior colliculi for orientation of our eyes and head.
What are the descending tracts?
Motor actions which are divided into pyramidal and extra-pyramidal tracts.
What are the pyramidal tracts?
Tracts which arises from the cortex and travels through the pyramids of the medulla. This includes the corticospinal and corticobulbar tract.
What are the extrapyramidal tracts?
Arise from the brain stem and are responsible for unconscious motor actions, not passing through the pyramids of the medulla:
Tectospinal
Vestibulospinal
Reticulospinal
Rubrospinal
What is the role of the anterior corticospinal tract?
Voluntary control of the ipsilateral and contralateral axial and trunk muscles. It is ipsilateral at the pyramids.