The Spinal Cord and Periphery Flashcards
Where do the sensory axons enter the spinal cord?
Dorsal horn
Where do the motor neurons have their spinal cord?
Ventral horn
How is the white matter arranged in the spinal cord?
It is arranged in 3 columns: posterior, lateral and anterior
What is carried in the corticospinal/ pyramidal tract?
Motor impulses from the motor cortex to the skeletal muscles
What is carried in the posterior/dorsal column?
Touch, tactile localisation, vibration sense and proprioception
What is carried in the lateral spinothalamic tract?
Pain and temperature
What is the function of the corticospinal tract?
Control of voluntary skilled movements
Where does the corticospinal tract start?
Motor cortex (area 4)
What is the blood supply to the corticospinal tract?
MCA
Where do the corticobulbar fibres go to?
Contralateral cranial nuclei
Where do the corticospinal fibres decussate?
Pyramids of the medulla
Where are upper and lower motor neurons found?
Upper - above the level of decussation
Lower - below the level of decussation
How are 1st, 2nd and 3rd order neurons differentiated?
1st Order - Receptor to dorsal root/ CrN ganglion
2nd Order - Ganglion to thalamus
3rd Order - Thalamus to Parietal Cortex
Where are the cells bodies of the 2nd neurons in the posterior column found?
Lower Medulla
What is the 2nd order neuron called in the posterior column and where does it pass?
Medial lemniscus: passes through the medulla, pons and midbrain to the thalamus
