orthodromic

{{Short description|Describes an impulse that runs along an axon away from the soma}}

{{about|a type of neuronal impulse|orthodromic distance|great-circle distance}}

{{Technical|date=September 2023}}

An orthodromic impulse runs along an axon in its anterograde direction, away from the soma (cell body).{{cite journal|last=EYZAGUIRRE|first=C|author2=KUFFLER, SW|title=Further study of soma, dendrite, and axon excitation in single neurons.|journal=The Journal of General Physiology|date=Sep 20, 1955|volume=39|issue=1|pages=121–53|pmid=13252238|pmc=2147522|doi=10.1085/jgp.39.1.121}}

In the heart, orthodromic may also refer to an impulse going in the correct direction from the dendrites to axon terminal (from the atria to the ventricles) in contrast to some impulses in re-entry.