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Home » Topics A–Z » Dermatomes
Authors: Claire Jordan Wiggins, Riyad N.H. Seervai, Medical Students, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA. DermNet NZ Editor in Chief: Adjunct A/Prof Amanda Oakley, Dermatologist, Hamilton, New Zealand. Copy edited by Gus Mitchell. June 2020.
A dermatome is an area of skin that is primarily supplied by a single nerve root: communicating sensation from this skin region to the brain. Somatosensation includes feedback from mechanoreceptors, thermoreceptors, proprioceptors, pain receptors, and chemoreceptors. Dermatomes are different from Blaschko lines.
Maps of dermatomes are not consistent, and variation will be noted between different sources.
Dermatomes
Credit: https://www.grepmed.com/images/2963/dermatomal-dermatomes-diagnosis-cutaneous-anatomy-nerves-roots
Dermatomes form a stack of horizontal layers on the trunk and run lengthwise in the extremities.
Knowledge of dermatomes can aid in the diagnosis of disease.
See smartphone apps to check your skin.
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