Cauda equina

Dr Craig Hacking ◉ ◈ and Dr Henry Knipe ◉ ◈ et al.

The cauda equina is the collective term given to nerve roots distal to the conus medullaris, which occupy the lumbar cistern.

It's name comes from the Latin for "horse's tail".

Anatomy: Spine

osteology
intervertebral disk
- annulus fibrosus
- nucleus pulposus
articulations
ligaments
musculature of the vertebral column
- muscles of the neck
- muscles of the back
  - suboccipital muscle group
    - rectus capitis posterior major muscle
    - rectus capitis posterior minor muscle
    - obliquus capitis superior muscle
    - obliquus capitis inferior muscle
  - splenius capitis muscle
  - splenius cervicis muscle
  - erector spinae group
  - transversospinalis group
  - quadratus lumborum
spinal cord
- gross anatomy
- white matter tracts (white matter)
  - anterolateral columns
  - lateral columns
  - dorsal columns
    - fasiculus gracilis (column of Goll)
    - fasiculus cuneatus (column of Burdach)
- grey matter
- nerve root
  - conjoined nerve root
- spinal meninges and spaces
- functional anatomy
  - thoracic autonomic outflow
  - sacral autonomic outflow
- spinal cord blood supply
  - arteries
    - vertebral artery
      - anterior spinal artery
        sulcal artery
      - posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA)
        posterior spinal arteries
    - segmental arteries
      - artery of Adamkiewicz
  - veins
    - spinal segmental veins
      - vertebral venous plexus
      - Batson venous plexus
sympathetic chain
- stellate ganglion

Article information

rID: 28665

System: Central Nervous System, Spine

Section: Anatomy

Tag: stub, refs, spine

Synonyms or Alternate Spellings:

Support Radiopaedia and see fewer ads

Cases and figures

Case 1: cauda equina on sagittal T2WCase 1: cauda equina on sagittal T2W

Drag here to reorder.

Updating… Please wait.

Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.

Thank you for updating your details.