The vertebral canal (spinal canal, spinal cavity or vertebral cavity) is a funnel-shaped anatomical space located within the posterior aspect of the spine. It houses the spinal cord, spinal meninges, blood vessels and spinal nerve roots branching off the spinal cord.

The vertebral canal is made of all the vertebral foramina of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar vertebrae. Its upper opening is found at the level of the foramen magnum. As the vertebral canal descends and reaches the sacrum, it continues as the sacral canal and finally opens with the sacral hiatus.

The diameter of the vertebral canal varies depending on the part of the spine. For example, the vertebral foramina of the thoracic vertebrae are smaller than those of the cervical vertebrae. The vertebral canal has four walls:

Anterior wall - formed by the posterior aspects of vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs, and the posterior longitudinal ligament;
Two lateral walls - consist of pedicles of vertebral arches, and contain intervertebral foramina;
Posterior wall - made of laminae of vertebral arches, and yellow ligaments.

Note: The first cervical vertebra (C1) is atypical and does not have a vertebral body. Therefore, the wall of the vertebral canal at the level of the first cervical vertebra (C1) is formed by the anterior and posterior arches of the atlas. At the level of the axis (C2), the anterior wall also contains its odontoid process.

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Vertebral canal