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Spinal Сord
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Spinal Сord

The spinal cord is approximately 45 cm long in adults. Its upper end is continuous with the medulla; the transition is defined to occur just above the level of exit of the first pair of cervical nerves. Its tapering lower end, the conus medullaris, terminates at the level of the L3 vertebra in neonates, and at the level of the L1–2 intervertebral disk in adults. Thus, lumbar puncture should always be performed at or below L3–4. The conus medullaris is continuous at its lower end with the threadlike filum terminale, composed mainly of glial and connective tissue, which, in turn, runs through the lumbar sac amidst the dorsal and ventral roots of the spinal nerves, collectively called the cauda equine (“horse’s tail”), and then attaches to the dorsal surface of the coccyx. The cervical, thoracic, lumbar, and sacral portions of the spinal cord are defined according to the segmental division of the vertebral column and spinal nerves.



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