Dermatomes are areas of skin supplied by single spinal nerves. There are 31 pairs of spinal nerves grouped into cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal nerves. Each dermatome transmits sensory details from its area of skin back to the brain. Dermatomes are important because symptoms occurring along specific dermatomes can help diagnose conditions like problems with nerve roots in the spine or shingles, where reactivated chickenpox virus causes pain and rashes along affected dermatomes.

1. Significance of Dermatomes
FATIMA WAHID MANGRIO
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2. DERMATOMES
• A dermatome is an area of skin that’s supplied
by a single spinal nerve. Your spinal nerves
help to relay sensory, motor, and autonomic
information between the rest of your body
and your central nervous system (CNS).
• You have 31 pairs of spinal nerves. They form
from nerve roots that branch from your
spinal cord. Spinal nerves are named and
grouped by the region of the spine that
they’re associated with.

3. • The five groups of spinal nerves are:
• Cervical nerves
• Thoracic nerves
• Lumbar nerves
• Sacral nerves
• Coccygeal nerves

4. • Spinal nerves help to relay information from
other parts of your body to your central
nervous system. As such, each dermatome
transmits sensory details from a particular
area of skin back to your brain.

5. Where is each dermatome located?
• Your dermatomes are numbered based on
which spinal nerve they correspond to. Below,
we’ll outline each dermatome and the area of
the body that it’s associated with.
• Remember that the exact area that a
dermatome may cover can vary by individual.
Some overlap is also possible. As such,
consider the outline below to be a general
guide.

6. Cervical spinal nerves
• C2: lower jaw, back of the head
• C3: upper neck, back of the head
• C4: lower neck, upper shoulders
• C5: area of the collarbones, upper shoulders
• C6: shoulders, outside of arm, thumb
• C7: upper back, back of arm, pointer and
middle finger
• C8: upper back, inside of arm, ring and little
finger

7. Thoracic spinal nerves
• T1: upper chest and back, armpit, front of arm
• T2: upper chest and back
• T3: upper chest and back
• T4: upper chest (area of nipples) and back
• T5: mid-chest and back
• T6: mid-chest and back
• T7: mid-chest and back
• T8: upper abdomen and mid-back
• T9: upper abdomen and mid-back
• T10: abdomen (area of belly button) and mid-back
• T11: abdomen and mid-back
• T12: lower abdomen and mid-back

8. Lumbar spinal nerves
• L1: lower back, hips, groin
• L2: lower back, front and inside of thigh
• L3: lower back, front and inside of thigh
• L4: lower back, front of thigh and calf,
area of knee, inside of ankle
• L5: lower back, front and outside of calf,
top and bottom of foot, first four toes

9. Sacral spinal nerves
• S1: lower back, back of thigh, back and inside
of calf, last toe
• S2: buttocks, genitals, back of thigh and calf
• S3: buttocks, genitals
• S4: buttocks
• S5: buttocks

10. Coccygeal spinal nerves
• buttocks, area of tailbone

12. Why are dermatomes important?
• Dermatomes are important because they can
help to assess and diagnose a variety of
conditions. For instance, symptoms that occur
along a specific dermatome may indicate a
problem with a specific nerve root in the
spine.

13. • Dermatomes are important because they can
help to assess and diagnose a variety of
conditions. For instance, symptoms that occur
along a specific dermatome may indicate a
problem with a specific nerve root in the
spine.

14. Shingles
• Shingles is a reactivation of the varicella
zoster (chickenpox) virus that lies dormant in
the nerve roots of your body. Symptoms of
shingles, such as pain and a rash, occur along
dermatomes associated with the affected
nerve root.