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Spinal Cord_Chp 13
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Spinal Cord | Connects peripheral nerves and brain ; Superhighway of never tracts conducts sensory nerve impulses to brain and motor nerve impulses from brain to effectors;protected by vertebral column and meninges, cerebrospinal fluid, and vertebral ligaments |
| Meninges | Dura mater, Arachnoid mater, pia mater |
| Vertebra/vertebral canal | most superficial; epidural space below |
| Dura Mater | Tube of dense irrecgular connective tissue forming a tough outer coverings; anchored to spinal cord at intervals by "denticulate ligaments"; keeps spinal cord in position during lateral movements |
| Arachnoid Mater | Middle "spider-web" layer, of thin collagen and elastic fibers; separated from dura mater by "Subdural Space"; contains interstitial fluid |
| Pia Mater | Innermost layer; adheres directly to spinal cord & brain; Many blood vessesl that supply oxygen and nutrients to the spinal cord; separated from arachnoid mater by subarachnoid space; contains cerebrospinal fluid (site of spinal tap from L3-L5) |
| Spaces | Epidural, Subdural, Subarachnoid |
| Epidural space | lies b/w the wall of the vertebral canal and the dura mater; contains fat and connective tissue to protect the spinal cord |
| Spinal Tap | Removal of cerebrospinal fluid from the subarachnoid space b/w L3 and L5 |
| Superior End (cervical spinal cord) | Cervical enlargement (C4-T1); nerves serve upper limbs |
| Superior End (lumbar spinal cord) | Lumbar enlargement (T9-T12); nerves serve lower limbs |
| Inferior End (spinal cord) | Conus medullaris, Filum terminale, Cauda equina |
| Conus medullaris | Cone-shaped end of spinal cord inferior to lumbar enlargement |
| Filum terminale | Threadlike extension of pia mater arising from end of conus medullaris; Anchors spinal cord to coccyx, stabilizing cord |
| Cauda equina | "horse's tail"; roots of lowest spinal nerves |
| Internal Anatomy of spinal cord | divided into right and left sides by anterior median fissure and posterior median sulcus |
| Gray matter | shaped like letter H; contains neuron cell bodies, neuroglia, and unmyelinated axons and dendrites; intergrates/summates excitatory and inhibitory postsynaptic potentials |
| Gray commissure | contains central canal which extends length of spina cord; continus with 4th ventricle of brain |
| White commissure | connects white matter in right and left sides of cord |
| White matter | Consists of myelinated and unmyelinated axons of sensory, motor, and inter-neurons that make up nerve tracts; nerve tracts are bundled into columns |
| Ascending (SENSORY)tracts | conduct nerve implulses toward brain |
| Descending (MOTOR)tracts | conduct nerve impulses down toward effectors |
| Spinothalamic tract | begins in the spinal ford and ends in the thalamus of the brain |
| Corticospinal tract | begins in the motor cortex of the brain and carries motor impulses downward to the spinal cord spinal nerves |
| Spinal Nerve | 31 pairs, exits spinal cord via the intervertebral foramina; connected to the spinal cord via a dorsal/posterior and ventral/anterior root |
| Posterior/dorsal root | sensory axons; has a ganglion composed of cell bodies of sensory neurons |
| Ganglion | a cluster of neuron cell bodies outside the spinal cord in the peripheral nervous system |
| Anterior/ventral root | motor axons; no ganglion |
| Cervical Nerves | 8 pairs (C1-C8) |
| Thoracic Nerves | 12 pairs (T1-T12) |
| Lumbar Nerves | 5 pairs (L1-L5) |
| Sacral Nerves | 5 pairs (S1-S5) |
| Coccygeal Nerve | 1 pair |
| Nerve Plexus | divided spinal nerves into branches or ramus; cervical, brachial, lumbar, sarcal, coccygeal |
| Cervical plexus (C1-C5) | supplies skin and muscles of head, neck, superior portion of shoulders and chest, and diaphragm; Phernic nerve; damage to cord above C3 causes respiratory arrest |
| Phrenic Nerve (C3-C5) | innervates diaphragms ; part of cervical plexus |
| Brachial plexes | Supplies shoulder & upper limb ; injuries affect the sensations and movements of the upper limbs |
| Axillary nerve | deltoid & teres major ; part of brachical plexus |
| Musculocutaneous nerve | forearm flexors; part of brachical plexus |
| Radial nerve | shoulder and forearm extensors; part of brachical plexus |
| Median & ulnar nerve | flexors of wrist & hand; part of brachical plexus |
| Lumbar plexus | supplies abdominal wall, external genitals & anterior/medial thigh; injury to femoral nerve causes inability to extend leg & loss of sensation in thigh; injury to obturator nerve causes paralysis of thigh adductors |
| Sacral plexus | supplies buttocks, perineum & part of lower limb; sciatic nerve |
| Sciatic nerve (L4 to S3) | supplies posterior thigh and everything below kness; cosists of common fibular and tibial nerve; part of sacral plexus |
| Branches of sciatic nerve | at the knee nerve splits into the tibial nerve and behind knee commom fibular nerve; injury of common fibular nerve is foot drop and numbness; injury in tibial nerve is the loss of function on anterior leg and foot |
| Dermatomes | specific, predictable area of skin supplied by one spinal nerve; possible to locate damaged regions of spinal cord |
| Spinal Reflexes | arc passes through the spinal cord; responses are integrated in the gray matter of the spinal cord; brain does not direct the response |
| relex arc | simplest of nerve implulse patheays, containing only a few neurons; a receptor, a sensory neuron, and integration center, a motor neuron and an effector |
| stretch reflex | contraction of a skeletal muscle in response to stretching of the muscle, preventing overstrectching and heling maintain muscle tone |
| stretch reflex process | 1.stretching stimulates receptor in muscle; 2. sensory neuron sends message to gray matter spinal cord; 3.sensory neuron activate motor neuron and same time impulses to the antagonistic muscle are inhibited; 4.muscle activated; 5.muscle contracts |