What are the structures of the spinal cord?
The spinal cord is a cylindrical structure of nervous tissue composed of white and gray matter, is uniformly organized and is divided into four regions: cervical (C), thoracic (T), lumbar (L) and sacral (S), (Figure 3.1), each of which is comprised of several segments.
What are the major structures and functions of the spinal cord?
Spinal cord and nerves: The spinal cord is a column of nerves that travels through the spinal canal. The cord extends from the skull to the lower back. Thirty-one pairs of nerves branch out through vertebral openings (the neural foramen). These nerves carry messages between the brain and muscles.
What are the 5 structure of the spine?
The spine is composed of 33 bones, called vertebrae, divided into five sections: the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine sections, and the sacrum and coccyx bones. The cervical section of the spine is made up of the top seven vertebrae in the spine, C1 to C7, and is connected to the base of the skull.
What is the internal structure of spinal cord?
The spinal cord is composed of an inner core of gray matter, which is surrounded by an outer covering of white matter. On cross section; the gray matter is seen as an H-shaped pillar with anterior and posterior gray columns, or horns, united by a thin gray commissure containing the small central canal.
What are the 4 functions of the spinal cord?
What does the spinal cord do?
- Motor Functions – directs your body’s voluntary muscle movements.
- Sensory Functions – monitors sensation of touch, pressure, temperature and pain.
- Autonomic Functions – regulates digestion, urination, body temperature, heart rate, and dilation/contraction of blood vessels (blood pressure).
What are the 3 sections of the spine?
The spine itself has three main segments: the cervical spine, the thoracic spine, and the lumbar spine. The cervical is the upper part of the spine, made up of seven vertebrae (bones).
How do you know which side is anterior vs posterior spinal cord?
White Columns Between the two posterior horns of gray matter are the posterior columns. Between the two anterior horns, and bounded by the axons of motor neurons emerging from that gray matter area, are the anterior columns.
How can you tell the difference between anterior and posterior spinal cord?
Anterior rootlets carry motor information out of the spinal cord (i.e. they contain efferent fibers) while the posterior rootlets carry sensory information into the spinal cord (i.e. they contain afferent fibers).