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Morphometry of the normal cadaveric cervical spinal cord
T Kameyama1, Y Hashizume, T Ando
1Department of Neurology, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Japan.
Spine
|September 15, 1994
Summary
Human cervical spinal cord size varies significantly between individuals. This study provides essential morphometric data for accurate analysis, noting strong correlations with brain weight, age, and height.
Area of Science:
- Neuroanatomy
- Morphometrics
- Human Anatomy
Background:
- Existing postmortem spinal cord morphometric studies report inconsistent measurements.
- There is a lack of established standards for human cervical spinal cord dimensions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish accurate morphometric data for the human cervical spinal cord.
- To provide a basis for precise morphometric analysis of the spinal cord.
Main Methods:
- Measured transverse area and diameters of the C7 spinal cord segment in 152 cadavers.
- Investigated correlations between spinal cord size and factors like age, body height, body weight, and brain weight.
- Measured spinal cord segments from C2 to T1 in 14 selected cases.
Main Results:
- Significant individual variation in cervical spinal cord size was observed (C7 transverse area: 33.3–74.0 mm²).
- Spinal cord size strongly correlated with brain weight, and moderately with age and body height.
- Relative ratios of transverse areas between segments remained consistent across individuals.
Conclusions:
- Considerable individual variation in spinal cord size necessitates its consideration in morphometric analyses.
- Measurements from a single normal segment can help estimate expected dimensions in cases of pathology like compression or atrophy.