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Medulla Oblongata Overview and Syndromes

The medulla oblongata is located in the brainstem and is approximately 3cm in length. It contains pyramidal structures, olives, and tubercles along with cranial nerves. The medulla contains motor and sensory tracts that decussate at this level. It is involved in vital motor and sensory functions through nuclei and tracts related to breathing, heart rate, swallowing and other autonomic functions. Damage to different areas of the medulla can cause syndromes like Wallenberg's lateral medullary syndrome or Dejerine's medial medullary syndrome characterized by specific neurological deficits.

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Hassan Ilyas
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49 views23 pages

Medulla Oblongata Overview and Syndromes

The medulla oblongata is located in the brainstem and is approximately 3cm in length. It contains pyramidal structures, olives, and tubercles along with cranial nerves. The medulla contains motor and sensory tracts that decussate at this level. It is involved in vital motor and sensory functions through nuclei and tracts related to breathing, heart rate, swallowing and other autonomic functions. Damage to different areas of the medulla can cause syndromes like Wallenberg's lateral medullary syndrome or Dejerine's medial medullary syndrome characterized by specific neurological deficits.

Uploaded by

Hassan Ilyas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

MEDULLA OBLONGATA

(BRAINSTEM)
• Medulla oblongata
• 3cm in length
• Grossly: pyramids, olives, gracile and cuneate
tubercles along with the cranial nerves
• Internal structure: cavity, tracts, nuclei
• Site of greatest sensory and motor decussation
• Medial longitudinal fasciculus*
Level Cavity Nuclei Motor tracts Sensory tracts
Decussation of Central canal Nucleus gracilis, Decussation of Spinal tract of
pyramids nucleus cuneatus, corticospinal cranial nerve V,
spinal nucleus of tracts, pyramids posterior
cranial nerve V, spinocerebellar
accessory tract, lateral
nucleus spinothalamic
tract, anterior
spinocerebellar
tract
Decussation of Central canal Nucleus gracilis, Pyramids Decussation of
medial lemnisci nucleus cuneatus, medial lemnisci,
spinal nucleus of fasciculus gracilis,
cranial nerve V, fasciculus
accessory cuneatus, spinal
nucleus, tract of cranial
hypoglossal nerve V, posterior
nucleus spinocerebellar
tract, lateral
spinothalamic
tract, anterior
spinocerebellar
tract
Level Cavity Nuclei Motor tracts Sensory tracts
Olives, inferior Fourth Inferior olivary Pyramids Medial longitudinal
cerebellar ventricle nucleus, spinal fasciculus,
peduncle nucleus of tectospinal tract,
cranial nerve medial lemniscus,
V, vestibular spinal tract of
nucleus, cranial nerve V,
glossopharyng lateral
eal nucleus, spinothalamic tract,
vagal nucleus, anterior
hypoglossal spinocerebellar
nucleus, tract
nucleus
ambiguus,
nucleus of
tractus
solitarius

Just inferior to Fourth Lateral ‘’


pons ventricle vestibular
nucleus,
cochlear nuclei
• The Arnold-Chiari malformation
is a congenital anomaly in
which there is a herniation
of the tonsils of the cerebellum
and the medulla oblongata
through
the foramen magnum
into the vertebral canal
Lateral Medullary Syndrome of
Wallenberg
• The lateral part of the medulla oblongata is supplied by the
posterior inferior cerebellar artery, which is usually a branch of
the vertebral artery. Thrombosis of either of these arteries
produces the following signs and symptoms:
• dysphagia and dysarthria due to paralysis of the ipsilateral
palatal and laryngeal muscles (innervated by the nucleus
ambiguus)
• analgesia and thermoanesthesia on the ipsilateral side of the
face (nucleus and spinal tract of the trigeminal nerve)
• vertigo, nausea, vomiting, and nystagmus (vestibular nuclei
• and contralateral loss of sensations of pain and temperature
(spinal lemniscus—spinothalamic tract).
• ipsilateral Horner syndrome (descending sympathetic
fibers)
• ipsilateral cerebellar signs—gait and limb ataxia
(cerebellum or inferior cerebellar peduncle)
Medial Medullary Syndrome (Dejerine
syndrome)
• The medial part of the medulla oblongata is supplied by
the vertebral artery. Thrombosis of the medullary branch
produces the following signs and symptoms:
• contralateral hemiparesis (pyramidal tract)
• contralateral impaired sensations of position and
movement and tactile discrimination (medial lemniscus)
• ipsilateral paralysis of tongue muscles with deviation to
the paralyzed side when the tongue is protruded
(hypoglossal nerve).
• REMEMBER THE ARRANGEMENT OF NUCLEI,
TRACTS, CAVITY FOR DIAGRAM LABELING AND
DRAWING AT DIFFERENT LEVELS

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