Cauda equina
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At the time the article was created Henry Knipe had no recorded disclosures.
View Henry Knipe's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Yvette Mellam had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Yvette Mellam's current disclosuresThe cauda equina is the collective term given to nerve roots distal to the conus medullaris, which occupy the lumbar cistern.
Its name comes from the Latin for "horse's tail".
The cauda equina is contained within the thecal sac and suspended in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The lower sacral (S2-S5) and coccygeal roots are located in the dorsal aspect of the sac, whereas the lumbar and first sacral roots lie obliquely as they descend.
The nerves of the cauda equina supply innervation to pelvic organs, internal and external anal sphincter, perineal sensation, and the lower limbs.
Blood supply comes from the anterior and posterolateral spinal arteries as well as radicular branches from segmental arteries.
Related pathology
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- Arachnoiditis
- Conus medullaris
- Spinal cord compression (summary)
- Lumbar cistern
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- Spinal epidermoid cyst
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- Conjoined nerve root
- Thoracolumbar injury classification and severity score (TLICS)
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osteology
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anatomical variants
- vertebral body
- neural arch
- transitional vertebrae
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white matter tracts (white matter)
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dorsal columns
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