# Dermatomes --- A **dermatome** is an area of the skin that is innervated by a single [[spinal nerves|spinal nerve]]. Generally speaking, the smaller the dermatome, the more sensitive the area of sensation. It is useful to know what dermatomes are innervated by what nerve because if there is damage to a nerve you can narrow down which one it is based on where the loss of sensation is. ![[dermatomes.png]] ___