Dichotomizing somatic nerve fibers exist in rats but they are rare

Electrophysiological methods that resolve problems of current spread were used to reinvestigate recent claims that over 40% of myelinated afferent neurons in rats have dichotomizing axons in which branches are maintained in two separate hindlimb nerves. Out of a sample of about 6400 axons recorded in rat hindlimb nerves including 3641 myelinated afferents, 14 axons were found to have a branch in both the sciatic nerve and a second somatic nerve. Examples were found of dichotomizing myelinated afferents, myelinated efferents and unmyelinated afferents.