Funicular or tract pain refers to pain arising from dysfunction or irritation of the longitudinal spinal cord tracts (funiculi) rather than nerve root (radicular) or musculoskeletal structures. It is essentially a central (spinal cord) pain syndrome caused by lesions of the intraspinal sensory pathways (spinothalamic tracts or dorsal columns). Clinically, funicular pain is characteristically diffuse, often burning or stabbing, and does not follow dermatomal distributions. Patients may describe unusual sensations such as a cold, aching dysesthesia in an extremity. A classic example is , an electric shock-like sensation down the spine or limbs with neck flexion, seen in cervical cord demyelination.
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