Dorsal column projection of fibres from the cat knee joint

Abstract

1. Stimulation of the cervical dorsal columns excited an average of nine knee joint fibres in the cat posterior articular nerve, eleven fibres in the cat medial articular nerve and thirteen fibres in the monkey posterior articular nerve.2. Joint fibres projecting to cervical levels were shown to be rapidly adapting by recording with micro-electrodes from single fibres in intact cat posterior articular nerves. The numerous slowly adapting fibres could not be antidromically excited from the cervical dorsal columns.3. Several control experiments suggested that the antidromic stimulation method accurately defined the dorsal column projection of joint fibres.