Anatomy of Spinal Cord

EXTERNAL FEATURES It is the lower elongated cylindrical part of the CNS and connect with the brain above It occupies upper 2/3rd of the vertebral canal It extends from the foraman magnum to the lower border of the L or upper border of the L 2 In neonates! the spinal cord extends approximately to vertebra LIII! but can reach as low as vertebra LI"# It is about $% cm in length &he lower end is called the conus medullaris 'rom here a prolongation of pia mater! the filum terminale descends to be attached to the bac( of the coccyx#

It has six external longitudinal fissures and sulci# &hey are a deep anterior median fissure! a shallow posterior median sulcus! a pair of anterolateral sulcus and a pair of posterolateral sulcus lying lateral to them# &he anterolateral sulcus and posterolateral sulcus mar(s the sites of attachment for the anterior and posterior roots of each pair of spinal nerves# It also has two enlargement called cervical and lumbosacral enlargement which represent the aggregations of cell bodies that supply the muscles and s(in of upper limbs and lower limbs#

&he spinal cord gives off 3 pairs of spinal nerves# ) cervical! 2 thoracic! % lumbar! % sacral! * coccygeal! each nerve is attached to the spinal cord by 2 roots! ventral + motor, ! * dorsal + sensory ,! each dorsal root bears a ganglion! the ventral * dorsal nerve unites to form the nerve trun(! which soon divides into ventral * dorsal rami &he part of spinal cord that gives off one pair of spinal nerve we call it a segment of spinal cord -elow the lower end of the spinal cord the roots of spinal nerves form a bundle (nown as the cauda e.uina +because of resemblance to the tail of a horse,

In transverse section of the cord is seen the central canal around which is the /0shaped grey matter! surrounded in turn by the white matter which contains the long ascending and descending tracts# Gray matter 1hen seen in transverse section the grey matter of the spinal cord forms an 2 / 2 shaped mass and is surrounded by white matter# It is divisible into , "entral /orn+column , 2, 3orsal /orn +column , 3, intermediate 4one #In some parts of spinal cord it presents as a lateral horn +column , $,&he right * left halves of spinal cord are connected across the midline by the grey commisure! which is traversed by the central canal

&he Ventral horn contains several nuclei with large motor neurons to control the movement of s(eleton muscles of trun( and limbs &he dorsal horn is dominated by neurons that respond to sensory stimulation# 5ll incoming sensory fibers in spinal nerves enter the dorsolateral part of the cord ad6acent to the dorsal horn in a dorsal root# Neurons in the dorsal horn pro6ect to higher levels of the CNS to carry sensations to them Sympathetic and parasympathetic neurons locate in the intermediate 4one espacially in the thoracic and sacral part of spinal cord# hite matter &he white matter of the sp cord is divisible into right * left halves in front by the anterior median fissure * behind by the posterior median sulcus 7ach half of the white matter is divided into , post funiculus 2,lateral funiculus 3,anterior funiculus &he white matter of the rt * lft sides is continuous across the midline through the anterior white commisure which lies ant to the grey commisure

&he nerve fibers in the white matter are of two general types8 # long ! ascending fibers pro6ecting to the upper parts of the brain 2# long! descending fibers pro6ecting from the upper parts of the brain to the spinal gray matter ASCEN!"NG TRACTS #'asiculus gracilis and 'asiculus cuneatus &hey convey sensory fibres subserving fine touch and proprioception +position sense,! mostly uncrossed! to the gracile and cuneate nuclei in the medulla oblongata# 2 # &he lateral and anterior spinothalamic tracts &hey transmit information to the thalamus about pain! temperature and crude touch

!ESCEN!"NG TRACTS Corticospinal tracts 9 descends from the cerebral cortex to the sp cord# It consists of 2 parts , the lat corticospinal tract! which lies in the lateral funiculus# 2, the ant corticospinal tract which lies in the ant funiculus &he corticospinal tracts are responsible for voluntary movements control#

2 # :ubrospinal tracts 3 # ;livospinal tracts

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