Point 3 Intro Pathway Note Deficit Summary Clinical Overview Problems Contents Anatomy

AN INTERESTING CLINICAL OBSERVATION Reports in the clinical literature note that vascular lesions that interrupt the blood supply to the spinal nucleus and tract V in the medulla (for example a thrombosis of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery) sometimes are immediately followed by sharp stabbing pain in and around the eye and on the ipsilateral face (hyperalgesia; algesia; Gr., = sense of pain). A possible explanation for this paradox is that the pain fibers are highly irritated before they die (spontaneous pain also sometimes occurs on the contralateral side of the body immediately following a lesion of the anterolateral system). Please remember that lesions of spinal tract and nucleus V can result in PAIN in the face (in addition to loss of pain and temperature later). What a paradox!