What is SSEP?
Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) evaluate the nerve pathway from the arms and legs through the spinal cord to the brain. SSEPs are used to: Identify spinal cord injuries or diseases.
How do you perform somatosensory evoked potentials?
Somatosensory evoked response:
- A healthcare professional will place electrodes on the scalp and at one or more locations on your body, such as the wrist, back of the knee, or the lower back.
- Small, painless electrical shocks will be delivered through the electrodes placed on the body.
What drugs affect SSEPs?
Intravenous Anesthetics.
- Barbiturates. Barbiturates produce a dose-dependent increase in latency and decrease in early cortical SSEP amplitude that does not preclude IOM.
- Etomidate.
- Ketamine.
- Propofol.
- Benzodiazepines.
- Opioids.
- Butyrophenones.
- Clonidine and Dexmedetomidine.
Does nitrous affect Neuromonitoring?
Use of nitrous oxide should probably be avoided during EP monitoring as it exhibits profound depressant effects on SSEPs and VEPs when combined with a volatile agent. Brainstem potentials are quite resilient with regard to anesthetics and are considered compatible with most anesthetic regimens.
What is neuromonitoring during spinal surgery?
Electrophysiologic monitoring, or neuromonitoring, is used during surgery to assess the functional integrity of the brain, brainstem, spinal cord, or peripheral and cranial nerves.
What does the rostral spinocerebellar tract do?
The rostral spinocerebellar tract is a tract which transmits information from the golgi tendon organs of the cranial half of the body to the cerebellum. It terminates bilaterally in the anterior lobe of the cerebellum (lower cerebellar peduncle) after travelling ipsilaterally from its origin in the cervical portion of the spinal cord.
How does the ventral spinocerebellar pathway work?
From spinal levels L2/3 downward, everything is carried by the ventral spinocerebellar tract. The ventralspinocerebellar tract, also known as the anterior spinocerebellar pathway, carries both proprioceptive and cutaneous information from the lower body (spinal levels L5 to T12) and enters the cerebellum via the superior cerebellar peduncles.
What are the spinocerebellar tracts?
Let’s take a closer look, section by section. Most of the spinocerebellar tracts travel wholly ipsilaterally, meaning they do not decussate, or cross, to the other side of the spinal cord at any point in the transmission of action potentials to the central nervous system.
What is the function of the posterior dorsal spinocerebellar tract?
Dorsal (posterior) spinocerebellar tract. This pathway transmits information from the caudal aspect of the body and legs functionally, although its associated nucleus (Clarke’s nucleus) receives information from all parts of the body from C8 to L2.