Lateral spinothalamic tract

Lateral spinothalamic tract
Lateral spinothalamic tract is 5a, in blue at right center.
Diagram of the principal fasciculi of the spinal cord.
Latin	tractus spinothalamicus lateralis
Gray's	subject #185 762
Dorlands/Elsevier	t_15/12817266

Overview

The lateral spinothalamic tract (lateral spinothalamic fasciculus) is supposed to come from cells in the dorsal column and the intermediate gray matter whose axons cross in the anterior commissure to the opposite lateral funiculus where they pass upward on the medial side of the ventral spinocerebellar fasciculus; on reaching the medulla oblongata they continue in the formatio reticularis near the median fillet and probably terminate in the ventro-lateral region of the thalamus.

It is supposed to conduct impulses of pain and temperature.

The lateral and ventral spinothalamic fasciculi are sometimes termed the secondary sensory fasciculus or spinal lemniscus.

See also

• Spinothalamic tract
• Anterior spinothalamic tract

External links

• NeuroNames ancil-964
• -744882167 at GPnotebook
• Lateral+spinothalamic+tract at eMedicine Dictionary

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.