The central course of the nervus octavus and its influence on motility / by C. Winkler.

  • Winkler, Cornelis, 1855-1941.
Date:
1907
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The central course of the nervus octavus and its influence on motility / by C. Winkler. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by King’s College London. The original may be consulted at King’s College London.

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    On the other hand, the anatomists who have studied after Ewald the central distribution of the octavus-fibres and wlio in the course of their labours, met with quite new views about the architecture of the medulla oblongata, have either quite neglected the results of the physiology of this nerve or else have taken these only into partial consideration. In my opinion, a monography trying to establish a relation between the results of physiology (results that I dare say are settled permanently as regards cardinal points since Ewald) and those of anatomy, may vindicate a right to exist. The task, enjoined on a complete monography about this subject, would be not only to ti'eat diiferent animals, representative of all the great families of the vertebrates, it should be written also for closely connected species of one family. This task however would exceed the power of one man. Thus much I have learnt during my researches, that the course of the octavus-fibres and their distrubution towards different centra in the medulla oblongata, pons and mesencephalon is ditfeiing for rabbit, pigeqn, dog, cat, mouse, horse and man, and that the function-trouble, consequent on section of the octavus in rabbit, pigeon, dog and cat is different too. Not in the cardinal points, but in so many of the details, that the cardinal points are sometimes masked by them. I will therefore take as basis for the description of the course of the primary and secundary octavus-tracts, and equally for the description of the function-troubles after their lesion, the nerve- system of the rabbit. Only in as much as I think it necessary for the elucidation of a few important facts, I will also memorate' details about this system in pigeons. I have chosen the rabbit, because the oblongata of this species is best known. By far the greater number of investigators have studied the oblongata in this animal. For it is not the least im- portant part of my ])urpose to consider the series of new facts, brought to our knowledge by the methods of Cajal and Marchi in their relation to the Octavus-question and to rely them to the physiologically proved disturbances in motion, consequent to the lesion of this nerve. The long tracts, descending from mesencephalon, metencephalon and myelencephalon towards the medulla, ought to be exnmined as to their connection with the N. octavus. The results, obtained by Marchi, Thomas, Van Gehuchten, Probst, James Collier,