Ventral posteromedial nucleus

The ventral posteromedial nucleus is a ventral tier nucleus of the thalamus. It receives neuronal connections from the trigeminothalamic pathways, which bring in general somatic sensory information from the face, including that of pain, temperature, touch, pressure, vibration and 2-point discrimination. From here, the ventral posteromedial nucleus projects its thalamocortical efferents to the primary somatosensory area on the superolateral surface of the cerebral cortex (Broadman’s areas 3, 1, 2).

A stroke in the thalamic region involving ventral posteromedial nucleus–such as, due to an embolic clot inside the striate arteries–could lead to loss of general somatic sensation from half of the face, on the side contralateral (opposite) to the lesion.