The dorsal ramus of spinal nerve (or posterior ramus of spinal nerve, or posterior primary division) is the posterior division of a

spinal nerve A spinal nerve is a mixed nerve, which carries motor, sensory, and autonomic signals between the spinal cord and the body. In the human body there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, one on each side of the vertebral column. These are grouped into th ...

. The dorsal ramus (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

for branch, plural ''rami'' ) is the dorsal branch of a

that forms from the

dorsal root The dorsal root of spinal nerve (or posterior root of spinal nerve or sensory root) is one of two "roots" which emerge from the spinal cord. It emerges directly from the spinal cord, and travels to the dorsal root ganglion. Nerve fibres with the v ...

of the nerve after it emerges from the

spinal cord The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure made up of nervous tissue, which extends from the medulla oblongata in the brainstem to the lumbar region of the vertebral column (backbone). The backbone encloses the central canal of the spi ...

. The spinal nerve is formed from the dorsal and

ventral rami The ventral ramus (pl. ''rami'') (Latin for ''branch'') is the anterior division of a spinal nerve. The ventral rami supply the antero-lateral parts of the trunk and the limbs. They are mainly larger than the dorsal rami. Shortly after a spinal n ...

. The dorsal ramus carries information that supplies

muscles Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other types of muscle ...

and

skin sensation In physiology, the somatosensory system is the network of neural structures in the brain and body that produce the perception of touch (haptic perception), as well as temperature (thermoception), body position (proprioception), and pain. It i ...

to the

human back The human back, also called the dorsum, is the large posterior area of the human body, rising from the top of the buttocks to the back of the neck. It is the surface of the body opposite from the chest and the abdomen. The vertebral column runs ...

Structure

Ventral root axons join with dorsal root ganglia to form mixed spinal nerves (below). These then merge to form peripheral nerves. Shortly after this

forms, it then branches into the dorsal ramus and

ventral ramus The ventral ramus (pl. ''rami'') (Latin for ''branch'') is the anterior division of a spinal nerve. The ventral rami supply the antero-lateral parts of the trunk and the limbs. They are mainly larger than the dorsal rami. Shortly after a spinal n ...

. Spinal nerves are

mixed nerve A spinal nerve is a mixed nerve, which carries motor, sensory, and autonomic signals between the spinal cord and the body. In the human body there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, one on each side of the vertebral column. These are grouped into the ...

s that carry both sensory and

motor An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

information. It also branches to form the grey and the white rami communicantes which make connections with the

sympathetic ganglia The sympathetic ganglia, or paravertebral ganglia are autonomic ganglia, of the sympathetic nervous system. Ganglia are 20,000 to 30,000 afferent and efferent nerve cell bodies that run along on either side of the spinal cord. Afferent nerve c ...

. After it is formed, the dorsal ramus of each spinal nerve travels backward, except for the first

cervical In anatomy, cervical is an adjective that has two meanings: # of or pertaining to any neck. # of or pertaining to the female cervix: i.e., the ''neck'' of the uterus. *Commonly used medical phrases involving the neck are **cervical collar **cerv ...

, the fourth and fifth

sacral Sacral may refer to: *Sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property ...

, and the

coccygeal The coccyx ( : coccyges or coccyxes), commonly referred to as the tailbone, is the final segment of the vertebral column in all apes, and analogous structures in certain other mammals such as horses. In tailless primates (e.g. humans and other ...

. Dorsal rami divide into medial, intermediate, and lateral branches. The lateral branch supplies innervation to the

iliocostalis Iliocostalis muscle is the muscle immediately lateral to the longissimus that is the nearest to the furrow that separates the epaxial muscles from the hypaxial. It lies very deep to the fleshy portion of the serratus posterior muscle. It lateral ...

muscle, as well as the skin lateral to the muscle on the back. The Intermediate branch supplies innervation to the spinalis muscle and the longissimus muscle. The medial branch supplies innervation to the rest of the epaxial derived muscles on the back (including the

transversospinales The transversospinales are a group of muscles of the human back. Their combined action is rotation and extension of the vertebral column The vertebral column, also known as the backbone or spine, is part of the axial skeleton. The vertebral c ...

, intertransversarii muscles, interspinalis muscles, suboccipital muscles, and splenius), and the zygapophyseal joints.

Function

Because each

carries both sensory and motor information, spinal nerves are referred to as

s. Posterior rami carry visceral motor, somatic motor, and sensory information to and from the skin and deep muscles of the back. The posterior rami remain distinct from each other, and each innervates a narrow strip of skin and muscle along the back, more or less at the level from which the ramus leaves the spinal nerve.

References

Additional images

Image:Spinal nerve.svg, The formation of the spinal nerve from the dorsal and ventral roots.

External links

* () {{DEFAULTSORT:Dorsal Ramus Of Spinal Nerve Spinal nerves