Tracts of nerve fibres that pass up the back of the spinal cordThe main nerve trunk running down the spinal canal and connecting the individual’s mind and consciousness to the rest of his or her body. It is about the size of a person’s little finger, in diameter. It cannot repair itself if damaged.. They carry those signals from the body that convey information about light touch and proprioceptionOtherwise referred to as joint position sense. Most of the time we are unaware of having this sensation but it is the real “sixth sense” (after taste, smell, sight, sound and touch). Without proprioception we are not aware of where are limbs are in space and this can make walking, in particular, difficult.. Most operations on the spinal cordThe main nerve trunk running down the spinal canal and connecting the individual’s mind and consciousness to the rest of his or her body. It is about the size of a person’s little finger, in diameter. It cannot repair itself if damaged. itself involve an approach from the back so the dorsal columns may be damaged by the surgical dissection, sometimes inevitably. Patients are normally warned that some loss of light touch sensation and/or joint position senseSee proprioception. may result from any such surgery and that such loses this can cause significant disability.