Spinal Cord Lesions

Key points

• Spinal cord lesions — localisation depends on which tracts are involved: the corticospinal tracts (motor, descending), the spinothalamic tracts (pain and temperature, crossing at the level of entry) and the dorsal columns (proprioception and vibration, crossing in the medulla).
• Motor lesions — amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (motor neuron disease):
• affects both upper (corticospinal tracts) and lower motor neuron!
• results in a combination of upper and lower motor neuron signs Poliomyelitis
• affects anterior horns resulting in lower motor neuron signs Combined motor and sensory lesions Disorder Brown-Sequard syndrome (spinal cord hemisection) Subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord (vitamin B12 & E…