Lumbar Spine Anatomy and Function. Story by Anne Asher, CPT • 20y. Medically reviewed by Jennifer Steinhoff, MD. The lumbar spine includes the five vertebrae in your lower back numbered L1 to L5.

The spine, or backbone, is a long column of bones that runs down the center of a person’s back. It is essential for many functions, such as movement, support, and protecting the spinal cord.

This article looks at the spinal cord’s function and anatomy and includes an interactive diagram. Health Conditions ... For adults, this is usually the first or second lumbar vertebrae.

The muscles of the lower back help stabilize, rotate, flex, and extend the spinal column, which is a bony tower of 24 vertebrae that gives the body structure and houses the spinal cord.

Spinal Cord Anatomy. The spinal cord is a vital part of the central nervous system, along with your brain. ... which suspends it within the 33 vertebrae of the spinal column.

This article was originally published on mentalfloss.com as 13 Facts About the Spinal Cord.

Axial MRI of the Lumbar Spine - T2 weighted image at the L4 level. On this view centered over the L4-L5 disk, one can see well the cauda equina surrounded by CSF (note that CSF is bright on ...