NBME 21 Answers : Block 1 : #50 = A photograph is shown of a myelin-stained cross ...

+2 upvote downvote
submitted by haliburton(85),

this is a cervical spinal cord section. the cuneate fasciculus is intact (UE) vibration and proprioception, but the white section is the gracile fasciculus (LE) and is damaged. I think the lateral portion that is uneven is just natural/artifact.

arezpr thorax section +3

guillo12 How do you know the gracile fasciculus is damage?!?! +1

cr which parte of the image its damage?, the pink? or black? +

usmile1 the pink park yes +1

d_holles If you look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gracile_fasciculus#/media/File:Spinal_cord_tracts_-_English.svg you can see that the closer to the center = legs, while further away = arms. +1

hyperfukus i still don't see where the damage is lol! FML +

hyperfukus i finally figured it out lol that was a slow moment i hope im not this slow on step yikes! +

angelaq11 @hyperfukus I had the same problem at first, marked it and then came back. If you remember, in the spinal cord the white matter and gray matter are "reversed" compared to the brain. That said, if the butterfly shaped region (ie, the gray matter) is colored (in this case) lilac and the rest (ie, white matter) is blackish, the only thing that is actually abnormal, is the region where the dorsal columns are, because it stains just like the normal gray matter. After that, you have to think about which fasciculus is damaged, the gracilis or the cuneatus. The gracilis is medial while the cuneatus is lateral (picture someone with glued legs and open arms). Hope this helped +1