The course of facial corticobulbar tract fibers in the dorsolateral medulla oblongata

• Published in: BMC Neurology Vol. 21; no. 1; pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: Kanbayashi, Takamichi, Sonoo, Masahiro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Springer Science and Business Media LLC 31.05.2021; BioMed Central; BioMed Central Ltd; BMC
• Subjects: Ataxia; Cerebrovascular disease and stroke; Classification; Corticobulbar tract; Development and progression; Diagnosis; Dysphagia; Facial Paralysis; Facial paresis; Health aspects; Humans; Infarction; Lateral medullary infarction; Lesions; Localization; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Medulla Oblongata; Neurochemistry; Neurology; Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system; Neurosurgery; Paralysis, Facial; Paresis; Patients; Physiological aspects; Pyramidal Tracts; RC346-429; Research Article; Japan; Medulla oblongata; Facial paresis; Lateral medullary infarction; Corticobulbar tract
• ISSN: 1471-2377; 1471-2377
• DOI: 10.1186/s12883-021-02247-z

Background The course of the corticobulbar tract (CBT) to the facial nucleus has been investigated by some previous studies. However, there are some unclear points of the course of the CBT to the facial nucleus. This study aimed to elucidate the detailed course of the CBT to the facial nucleus through the analysis of lateral medullary infarction (LMI) cases. Methods The neurological characteristics and magnetic resonance imaging findings of 33 consecutive patients with LMI were evaluated. The location of the lesions was classified rostro-caudally (upper, middle, or lower) and horizontally. Further, we compared the neurological characteristics between the groups with and without central facial paresis (FP). Results Eight (24%) patients with central FP ipsilateral to the lesion were identified. Dysphagia and hiccups were more frequently observed in the group with central FP than in the group without central FP. In patients with central FP, middle medullary lesions and those including the ventral part of the dorsolateral medulla were more frequently observed. Contrastingly, patients with lesions restricted to the lateral and dorsal regions of the dorsolateral medulla did not present with central FP. Conclusion The results of this study indicate that the CBT to the facial nucleus descends with the corticospinal tract at least to the middle portion of the medulla, and then ascends to the facial nucleus through the medial and ventral areas of the dorsolateral medulla after decussation.