Anterior Roots of Thoracic Nerves (Left)
Radices anteriores nervorum thoracicorum
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The anterior roots (ventral or motor roots) of the thoracic nerves are each formed by the union of several smaller anterior rootlets, which arise from the anterolateral sulcus of the thoracic spinal cord.
Generally, the anterior roots consist of efferent fibers. These include:
—somatic efferents that convey motor signals from the ventral horn of the spinal cord to their muscular targets in the body;
—general visceral efferents of the sympathetic nervous system that originate in the lateral horn of the spinal cord and travel to target glands, organs, and blood vessels. They typically join their posterior root counterparts to form a mixed spinal nerve, which consists of both motor and sensory nerve fibers.
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Thoracic Nerves
The 12th thoracic nerve is called the subcostal nerve and is unique in that it gives off a branch to the first lumbar nerve, thus contributing to the lumbar plexus.
