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Chapter 13 Visceral inputs to sensory pathways in the spinal cord

1986; Elsevier BV; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0079-6123(08)62764-8

1875-7855

William D. Willis,

Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the experimental studies of the visceral afferent system at the spinal cord level that reveal several similarities and differences between this system and the somatic afferent system. Spinal cord interneurons frequently receive a convergent input from the somatic and the visceral afferent fibers. Although some interneurons have a peripheral input that appears to be restricted to visceral afferents, most interneurons, with visceral input, have a convergent input from the somatic tissue. The convergent inputs may reflect the neural processing responsible for pain referral. Besides excitatory interactions between the somatic and visceral inputs, there are also inhibitory interactions. The ascending sensory pathways, from the spinal cord, that convey visceral information to the brain include pathways in both the dorsal and the ventral parts of the cord. In man, the dorsal pathways appear to be responsible for such sensations, as the bladder, the rectal fullness, and the passage of urine and feces, whereas the ventral pathways are concerned with the pain.