Somatotopic organization of motor fibers in the corona radiata in monoparetic patients with small subcortical infarct.
OBJECTIVE
The somatotopic organization of the corticospinal fibers is of importance because it is related to certain stroke syndromes. Although it has been suggested that motor fibers are somatotopically arranged in the corona radiata, the evidence is still insufficient in human.


METHODS
The relative anteroposterior and mediolateral location of the lesions was measured on T2-weighted MRI in 28 patients who developed isolated motor deficit limited to the arm, leg, or bulbofacial muscles after a small corona radiata infarct.


RESULTS
The location of the lesions associated with bulbofacial, arm, and leg paresis showed anterolateral-to-posteromedial distribution.


CONCLUSIONS
The results suggest that motor fibers subserving the bulbofacial, arm, and leg muscles are somatotopically arranged at the level of the corona radiata.
Song
Young-Mok
YM
Department of Neurology, Dankook University Hospital, Anseo-Dong, Cheonan, Chungnam, South Korea. ymsong@medimail.co.kr
D000368:Aged; D001132:Arm / Q000294:innervation / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002544:Cerebral Infarction / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020772:Internal Capsule / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007866:Leg / Q000294:innervation / Q000503:physiopathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D009413:Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / Q000473:pathology; D010291:Paresis / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011712:Pyramidal Tracts / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*