Presentation of the slide scene This is the stage at which the pain signals should appear as they travel from different body parts up to the cerebral cortex and consciousness. The stage consists of five (1 - 5) main parts. Check carefully that you have understood what is right and left and what is from behind and below. The blue rotation arrow in 1 can be helpful here. 1/ On the left of the stage, five cross-sectional discs are stacked; the two at the bottom through the spinal cord, the three above through the brainstem. The rotation arrow indicates that you are looking at the cut discs from below and that up in the image (1) corresponds to backwards. 2/ and 3/ at the centre of the scene:2/ The brainstem with the mound of vision (thalamus) at the top and the top five cervical spinal cord segments at the bottom, all seen from behind (dorsally).3/ Lower part of the spinal cord seen from behind. The slightly grey areas of 2/ and 3/ mark the hind roots, triplet nerves and pain-switching nuclei (check the superficial structures in the picture "Brainstem and spinal cord: nuclei and conduction pathways"). 4/ To the right of the stage is a human body seen from behind.5/ And at the top, the left and right hemispheres of the cerebrum seen partly from the outside and partly from the inside. The inner nerve fibre capsule (capsula interna) that connects the visual mound (thalamus) with the large/end brain (telencephalon) is marked only by its name. You should examine the scene at the correct magnification (put the pointer in the large field, hold more Ctrl, and click) and move around the Stage as you go (put the pointer in the large field, hold more Alt, and move the image with the pointer).

Step 1.

Pain/temperature inflows, switching points/cores Activate and expand the five lists in turn. Go through them as usual! When you are done, choose the half of the body that you want to subject to a pain/temperature stimulus. You can select the page at the bottom of this column under the heading "All steps", or you just go to "next step" and then get to the right half of the body! Step 2 = right half of the body. Step 3 = left half of the body.

Step 2.

Pain/temperature stimulus on the right half of the body! Tick off the body region — face, shoulder or hip — you want to give a pain stimulus. Proceed systematically. Take the different regions in turn. Light them according to the numbering and unfold the lists accordingly. Turn on and off in turn. Click in the picture or on the name in the list to get information! When you are done with one region, turn it off before moving to the next.

Step 3.

Pain/temperature stimulus on the left half of the body! Check off the body region – face, shoulder or hip – you want to give a pain stimulus. Proceed systematically. Take the different regions in turn. Light them according to the numbering and unfold the lists accordingly. Turn on and off in turn. Click in the picture or on the name in the list to get information! When you are done with one region, turn it off before moving to the next.

Pain (and temperature) signaling in the spinal cord and brain.