Spinal gray matter

Organization and role

Its cross-sectional outline resembles a butterfly. Sensory, motor and autonomic circuits provide local processing, while the surrounding white matter mainly contains transmission pathways.

Clinical relevance and investigation

A lesion may selectively affect particular functions. Neurological examination and MRI investigate location and cause rather than inferring them solely from pain location.

Points to consider

Location matters as well as extent. Motor and sensory pathways do not all follow the same course or cross at the same level. Strength, reflexes and different sensory modalities are examined for a coherent pattern of findings.

Role of TAGMED care

At TAGMED, assessment aims to understand symptoms, history and functional limitations. Manual care and osteopathy, motorized spinal decompression, laser and shockwave have different indications. The term described in this entry is not enough to select any of these modalities. Their relevance, limitations and possible contraindications should be discussed in relation to diagnosis and individual goals.

Related concepts and distinctions

These concepts belong to the same field, but are not synonyms.

• Spinal white matter — Spinal cord tissue containing mainly axon bundles, many of them myelinated, that connect different levels of the nervous system.
• Dorsal horn of the spinal cord — Posterior region of spinal gray matter that receives and processes part of the sensory information arriving from the body.
• Ventral horn of the spinal cord — Anterior region of spinal gray matter containing motor neuron cell bodies that contribute to the control of skeletal muscles.

Medical references

1. OpenStax, Rice University. Anatomy and Physiology 2e — The Central Nervous System.
2. Radiological Society of North America. RadLex Radiology Lexicon — terminology resource.

References document the topic; their inclusion does not imply endorsement of TAGMED services by those organizations.