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EFFECTS OF POSTERIOR ROOT SECTION ON THE ACTIVITY OF SOME MUSCLES IN MAN

1960; BMJ; Volume: 23; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1136/jnnp.23.1.10

1468-330X

P. W. Nathan, T. A. Sears,

Peripheral Nerve Disorders

Previous Observations Effects of Cutting Posterior Roots on Limb Movements.-In 1811, Charles Bell presented evidence the nerves of sense and the nerves of motion are distinct through their whole course, though they seem sometimes united in one bundle; he established that the anterior roots are motor, and he offered reasons for believing that the posterior roots are sensory. After Sir Charles Bell's idea was accepted, one of the next questions to ask was what effect cutting the posterior roots might have on motor activities. Monkeys.-Mott and Sherrington (1895) studied this problem by dividing the posterior roots from the forelimb or hindlimb in the monkey. They kept these animals under observation up to and over three months, and they confirmed histologically that the roots had been cut. They wrote: From the time of performance of the section onwards, the movements of the hand and foot are practically abolished; the movement of grasping, which is so useful to the monkey, both with the hand and foot, never occurs at all in our experience. On the other hand, the movements at the elbow and knee, and especially the movements at the shoulder and hip, are much less impaired.