What Are The Directional Terms Of The Body?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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Anterior At or near the front of the body (front view) Posterior At or near the back of the body (back view) Midline An imaginary vertical line that divides the body equally (right down the middle) Lateral Farther from midline (side view) Medial Nearer to midline (side view)

What are the directional terms?


Superior or cranial – toward the head end of the body

; upper (example, the hand is part of the superior extremity). Inferior or caudal – away from the head; lower (example, the foot is part of the inferior extremity). Anterior or ventral – front (example, the kneecap is located on the anterior side of the leg).

What are the 10 directional terms?

  • Superior. toward the head.
  • Inferior. Lower on the body, farther from the head.
  • Dorsal. Pertaining to the back.
  • Ventral. Belly side.
  • Medial. toward the midline.
  • Lateral. away from the midline.
  • Proximal. Nearer to the trunk of the body.
  • Distal. Farther from the trunk of the body.

What are the 12 directional terms?

  • Ventral. Toward the Front (or belly)
  • Dorsal. Toward the Back (or spine)
  • Anterior. Toward the front Side.
  • posterior. Toward the back side.
  • Superior. Above.
  • Inferior. Below.
  • Medial. Towards the middle.
  • Lateral. Towards the side.

What are the 4 planes of the body?

The anatomical planes are four imaginary flat surfaces or planes that pass through the body in the anatomical position. They are

the median plane, sagittal planes, coronal (frontal) planes and horizontal (transverse) planes

(figure 2). Anatomical descriptions are also based on these planes.

What are the 3 major body planes?

The three planes of motion are the

sagittal, frontal and transverse planes

.

What is the purpose of directional terms?

Directional terms

provide precise descriptions of a structure’s location

. They allow a description of anatomical position by comparing location relative to other structures or within the rest of the body.

Why do we need to use directional terms and body?

Anatomical Terms: Resources

Understanding anatomical directional terms and body planes will

make it easier to study anatomy

. It will help you to be able to visualize positional and spatial locations of structures and navigate directionally from one area to another.

Is dorsal a top or bottom?

The dorsal (from Latin dorsum ‘back’) surface of an organism refers to the back, or upper side, of an organism. If talking about the skull,

the dorsal side is the top

. The ventral (from Latin venter ‘belly’) surface refers to the front, or lower side, of an organism.

Which two of the directional terms are reserved for the limbs?

Regional Terms

Notice that the term “brachium” or “arm” is reserved for the “upper arm” and “antebrachium” or “forearm” is used rather than “lower arm.” Similarly, “femur” or “thigh” is correct, and “leg” or “

crus”

is reserved for the portion of the lower limb between the knee and the ankle.

What is a Parasagittal cut?

Parasagittal plane—

A vertical cut that is off-center that separates the left of the specimen from the right in unequal portions

. It does not matter whether it is the left side or the right side that is larger, as long as they are not equal.

What are the basic anatomical terms?

To compare the location of body parts relative to each other, anatomy uses some universal directional terms:

anterior, posterior, ventral, dorsal

, distal, proximal, medial, lateral, median, superior, inferior, external, internal, frontal, occipital, rostral, caudal, superficial, deep, central, peripheral, ipsilateral, …

What is the purpose of body planes?

When used in conjunction with anatomy, planes are

used to divide the body and its parts

, which allows you to describe the views from which you study the body.

Which are the major planes of the human body Select all that apply?

Anatomical Planes in a Human: There are three basic planes in zoological anatomy:

sagittal, coronal, and transverse

. A human in the anatomical position, can be described using a coordinate system with the Z-axis going from front to back, the X-axis going from left to right, and the Y-axis going from up to down.

What is the side of your body called?


Lateral

describes the side or direction toward the side of the body. The thumb (pollex) is lateral to the digits. Medial describes the middle or direction toward the middle of the body.

Leah Jackson
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Leah Jackson
Leah is a relationship coach with over 10 years of experience working with couples and individuals to improve their relationships. She holds a degree in psychology and has trained with leading relationship experts such as John Gottman and Esther Perel. Leah is passionate about helping people build strong, healthy relationships and providing practical advice to overcome common relationship challenges.