SPINOTHALAMIC

TRACTName- Varnavi Gupta

Roll no. – 140
Batch – MBBS 2023-24
1st professional
 CONTENT

■ TRACTS OF SPINAL CORD

■ CLASSIFICATION OF THE TRACTS
■ ASCENDING TRACTS
■ LATERAL SPINOTHALAMIC TRACT
■ ANTERIOR SPINOTHALAMIC TRACT
■ CLINICAL CORRELATION
■ BIBLIOGRAPHY
 TRACTS OF SPINAL CORD
 The tracts are defined as collections of nerve fibres within the central nervous
system, which have same origin, course, and termination.
 They are sometimes referred to as :- Fasciculi or Lemnisci.
 The tracts are named after the names of masses of grey matter connected by them.
 CLASSIFICATION OF THE TRACTS
■ The spinal cord contains mainly two types of tracts :-
> Ascending tracts
> Descending tracts

■ Transverse section of the spinal cord at mid-cervical level showing main

descending (on left side) and ascending (on right side) tracts.
 ASCENDING TRACTS
■ The ascending tracts conduct the
impulses from the periphery to the brain
through the cord.
 ASCENDING TRACTS
The important ascending tracts fall into the
following three types:
1. Those concerned with pain and temperature
sensation and crude touch are: lateral and
anterior Spinothalamic tracts.
2. Those concerned with fine touch and
conscious proprioceptive sensation, are:
fasciculus gracilis and fasciculus cuneatus.
3. Those concerned with unconscious
proprioception and muscular coordination,
are: anterior and posterior spinocerebellar
tracts.
 LATERAL SPINOTHALAMIC TRACTS

■ It carries sensation of pain and

temperature.
■ Cell bodies of first order sensory
neurons lie in the dorsal root ganglia.
■ In the cord, the fibers ascends one or
two segments as the dorsolateral tract
of Lissauer at the tip of posterior horns
and then relay in the posterior horn.
 LATERAL SPINOTHALAMIC
TRACT
■ The axons of second-order sensory
neurons cross to the opposite side in
the anterior white commissure and
ascend up as Lateral Spinothalamic
tract.
■ They terminate in the Ventral
posterolateral nucleus (VPL) of the
thalamus
■ The axons of third-order sensory
neurons projects to the primary
sensory cortex of the cerebral
hemisphere.
 ANTERIOR SPINOTHALAMIC TRACT

■ It carries the sensation of crude touch

and pressure tickle from opposite half
of the body.
■ Cell bodies of first order sensory
neurons lie in the dorsal root ganglia.
■ In the cord the fibers ascends one or
two segments as the dorsolateral tract
of Lissauer at the tip of posterior horns
and then relay in the posterior horn.
 ANTERIOR SPINOTHALAMIC
TRACT
■ The axons of second order sensory
neurons of substantia gelatinosa
cross the midline in the anterior
white commissure and then ascends
as ventral Spinothalamic tract.
■ Terminate in ventral posterolateral
nucleus of thalamus.
TRACT LOCATION ORIGIN TERMINATION FUNCTION

LATERAL LATERAL WHITE POSTERIOR HORN VENTRAL CARRY PAIN AND

SPINOTHALAMIC COLUMN CELLS OF SPINAL POSTEROLATERAL(VP TEMPERATURE FROM
TRACT CORD OF OPPOSITE L) NUCLEUS OF OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE
SIDE THALAMUS BODY

ANTERIOR ANTERIOR WHITE POSTERIOR HORN VENTRAL CARRY LIGHT TOUCH,

SPINOTHALAMIC COLUMN CELLS OF SPINAL POSTEROLATERAL(VP PRESSURE,TICKLE,
TRACT CORD OF OPPOSITE L) NUCLEUS OF AND ITCH SENSATION
SIDE THALAMUS FROM OPPOSITE SIDE
OF THE BODY
 CLINICAL CORRELATION

■ CORDOTOMY- In the spinothalamic fibres the pain fibers are later In

the cervical region the pain fibres become very superficial In the lateral
white column, hence cordotomy can be performed safely at this level to
relieve the pain in the opposite half of the body.
■ SYRINGOMYELIA -The involvement of decussating fibres of this tract in the
anterior commissure leads to bilateral loss of pain and temperature sensations at the
level of the lesion.

■ Damage of anterior Spinothalmic tract leads to loss of light touch and pressure on
the opposite side of the body below the level of the lesion.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

■ VISHRAM SINGH
■ SNELL’S NEUROANATOMY
THANK YOU!!