The Six Major Anatomic Decussations with Clinical Correlation

Abstract

Initially, the most confounding elements of neuroanatomy for many medical students are likely to be the decussations of the neural pathways. There are six major and partial decussations; most are simple, but they must be committed to memory as they are the kernel of neuroanatomic localization. These are the corticospinal tract, corticobulbar tract, visual pathway, oculomotor decussation with its associated pathways, lateral spinothalamic tract, and medial lemniscus. This chapter will attempt to summarize these anatomic facts in a concise, proximate fashion to facilitate an easy review when required.