Anterior median fissure of spinal cord

Anterior median fissure of spinal cord
Anterior median fissure of spinal cord
	A spinal nerve with its anterior and posterior roots.
	Transverse section of the spinal cord in the mid-thoracic region.
Details
Identifiers
Latin	fissura mediana anterior medullae spinalis
TA98	A14.1.02.007
TA2	6053
FMA	83735
	Anatomical terminology [edit on Wikidata]

The anterior median fissure of the spinal cord is a deep midline groove of the anterior/ventral spinal cord.^[1]^: 486 It divides the white matter of the anterior spinal cord nearly in two.^[1]^: 487 The spinal pia mater extends into the fissure to line the surfaces of the spinal cord.^[1]^: 453

Anatomy

It has an average depth of about 3 mm, but this is increased in the lower part of the spinal cord. It contains a double fold of pia mater. Its floor is formed by a transverse band of white matter - the anterior white commissure - which is perforated by blood vessels on their way to or from the central part of the spinal cord.^{[citation needed]}

Relations

The anterior median fissure provides a groove in which the anterior spinal artery sits.^{[citation needed]}

Clinical significance

Imaging

The anterior median fissure may be identified on computerized tomography (CT) myelograms, but more commonly on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. The AMF has a characteristic appearance on MRI scans that differs from the MRI appearance of the central canal.^{[citation needed]}

Additional images

Diagrams of the medulla spinalis.

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 752 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

Tomsick T, Peak E, Wang L: Fluid-Signal Structures in the Cervical Spinal Cord on MRI: Anterior Median Fissure vs. Central Canal. AJNR 2017; 38:840–45

Oichi Y, Hanakita J, Takahashi T, Minami M, Kawakoa T, et al.: Morphological patterns of the anterior median fissure in the cervical spinal cord evaluated by computed tomography after myelography. Neurospine 2018; 15:388-393

Tomsick T, Wang L, Zuccarello M, Ringer AJ. Fluid-signal structures in the cervical spinal cord on MRI in Chiari patients: Central canal or anterior median fissure? AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2021 Apr;42(4):801-806. doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A7046. Epub 2021 Mar 11.PMID 33707286