Spinal Cord

Synonyms

Spinal neuraxis

Definition

The spinal cord is the caudal continuation of the brain stem medulla. It is a component of the central nervous system that functions to relay information between the brain and periphery.

Current Knowledge

Anatomy

The spinal cord is a thin tubular neural structure that weighs 30–35 g and is 42–45 cm long in the human adult (McCormick and Stein 1990). It is invested in meninges which is continuous with the meninges of the brain and is contained within the spinal canal of the vertebral column. In the adult, the caudal termination of the spinal cord is at the lower border of the first lumbar vertebrae and is termed the conus medullaris. A thin fibrous extension of pia mater from the conus forms the filum terminale which becomes enveloped in dura and extends to the posterior surface of the coccyx as the coccygeal ligament. There is a large bundle of lumbosacral roots emerging from the conus that surrounds the filum, known as the cauda equina. The spinal...