Anatomy and Physiology

Chapter 13 The Spinal Cord and Spinal Nerves

13.1 Spinal Cord Anatomy

1. What is the spinal cord?

a. ____________________________________________________________
2. About how many neurons make up the spinal cord?
a. ____________________
3. What is the second protective layer of the spinal cord?
a. ____________________
4. What type of tissue is the meninges?
a. ____________________
5. What are the three meninges?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
c. ____________________
6. What is the epidural space?
a. ____________________________________________________________
7. Describe the Dura mater.
a. ____________________________________________________________
8. Describe the Arachnoid mater.
a. ____________________________________________________________
9. Describe the Pia mater.
a. ____________________________________________________________
10. What is the subdural space?
a. ____________________________________________________________
11. What are the denticulate ligaments?
a. ____________________________________________________________
12. What is the subarachnoid space?
a. ____________________________________________________________
13. What is the shape of the spinal cord?
a. ____________________________________________________________
14. Where does the spinal cord begin and end?
a. ____________________________________________________________
15. What are the two enlargements of the spinal cord and where are they?
a. ____________________
i. ____________________________________________________________
b. ____________________
i. ____________________________________________________________
16. What is the conus medullaris?
a. ____________________________________________________________
17. What is the filum terminale?
a. ____________________________________________________________
18. What are the spinal nerves?
a. ____________________________________________________________
19. How many pairs of spinal nerves are there?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
c. ____________________
d. ____________________
e. ____________________
f. Total: _______________
20. What are roots and rootlets?
a. ____________________________________________________________
21. What are the ganglia?
a. ____________________________________________________________
22. What are the posterior roots responsible for?
a. ____________________________________________________________
23. What are the anterior roots responsible for?
a. ____________________________________________________________
24. What is the cauda equina?
a. ____________________________________________________________
25. What are the names of the two grooves that run through the length of the spinal cord?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
26. What is the H shaped portion of the spinal cord as seen through a transverse plane view?
a. ____________________________________________________________
27. What form the crossbar of the H?
a. ____________________
28. What is the central canal?
a. ____________________________________________________________
29. What are nuclei in relation to the spinal cord?
a. ____________________________________________________________
30. What are the horns?
a. ____________________________________________________________
31. What are the three main types of horns? What do they contain?
a. ________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
b. ________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
c. ________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
32. What are the columns? What are they called?
a. ____________________________________________________________
i. ____________________
ii. ____________________
iii. ____________________
33. What are the tracts? What are they called?
a. ____________________________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
ii. ________________________________________
 34. What are the nine steps outlined in figure 13.4?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
c. ____________________
d. ____________________
e. ____________________
f. ____________________
g. ____________________
h. ____________________
i. ____________________

13.2 Spinal Nerves

1. What is the protective layer of connective tissue surrounding spinal nerves?

a. ____________________
2. What is the protective layer made up of?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
c. ____________________
3. What is a fascicle?
a. ____________________________________________________________
4. What is the covering of the fascicle? What does it consist of?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________________________________________________
5. What is the outer most covering of the nerve? What does it consist of?
a. ____________________
i. ____________________________________________________________
6. What are branches?
a. ____________________________________________________________
7. What is the meningeal branch?
a. ____________________________________________________________
8. What are the plexuses? What are each called? *
a. ____________________________________________________________
i. ____________________
ii. ____________________
iii. ____________________
iv. ____________________
v. ____________________
9. What are the intercostal nerves?
a. ____________________________________________________________
10. Exhibits 13 A-D should be studied thoroughly in relation to where they are and where they
control, and some of the symptoms of problems associated with.
11. What are dermatomes?
a. ____________________________________________________________

13.3 Spinal Cord Physiology

1. What are the two principle functions of the spinal cord?

a. ____________________
b. ____________________
2. What function does the white mater tracts perform?
a. ________________________________________
3. What function does the grey mater tracts perform?
a. ________________________________________
4. Where is the anterior corticospinal tract located?
a. ________________________________________
5. When looking at the name of a tract what element comes last?
a. ________________________________________
6. What is the spinothalamic tract?
a. ________________________________________
7. What is the posterior column? What does it do?
a. ____________________
i. ________________________________________
8. What are the two fasciculi?
a. ____________________
b. ____________________
9. What are the two types of descending pathways?
a. ____________________
i. ____________________
ii. ____________________
iii. ____________________
b. ____________________
i. ____________________
ii. ____________________
iii. ____________________
iv. ____________________
v. ____________________
10. What is the function of the descending pathways? (a. and b. in 9 = the a. and b. in 10)
a. ____________________________________________________________
b. ____________________________________________________________
11. What is a reflex?
a. ________________________________________
12. What is a spinal reflex? Example?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________
13. What is a cranial reflex? Example?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________
14. What is a somatic reflex?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________
15. What is an autonomic reflex?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________
16. What is a reflex arc? What are the five functional components?
a. ________________________________________
i. ____________________
ii. ____________________
 iii. ____________________
iv. ____________________
v. ____________________
17. What is the stretch reflex? And the five components? KNOW THIS WELL
a. ____________________________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
ii. ________________________________________
iii. ________________________________________
iv. ________________________________________
v. ________________________________________
18. What type of reflex is the stretch reflex?
a. ____________________
19. What is reciprocal innervation?
a. ____________________________________________________________
20. What is the tendon reflex? KNOW THIS WELL
a. ____________________________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
ii. ________________________________________
iii. ________________________________________
iv. ________________________________________
v. ________________________________________
21. What is the Golgi Tendon Organ?
a. ____________________________________________________________
22. What are the flexor and crossed extensor reflexes?
a. ________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
ii. ________________________________________
iii. ________________________________________
iv. ________________________________________
v. ________________________________________
b. ________________________________________
i. ________________________________________
ii. ________________________________________
iii. ________________________________________
iv. ________________________________________
v. ________________________________________
23. What is a contralateral reflex?
a. ________________________________________