Anatomical Terminology Flashcards
What is the anatomical position?
Standing upright Facing forward Hands by hips Feet parallel and facing forward Hands straight by your side
What are the 4 anatomical planes?
Sagittal
Transverse
Frontal/Coronal
Oblique
What is sagittal?
Vertical line - creates a left and right
What are the 2 types of sagittal planes?
Median sagittal plane = vertical line perfectly in the middle
Parasagittal plane = vertical line is not perfectly down the middle
What is the transverse plane?
Horizontal line - creates top (superior) and bottom (inferior)
What is the frontal/coronal plane?
Vertical line - creates front (anterior) and back (posterior)
What is the oblique plane?
Any section that randomly divides the body - any angle that isn’t horizontal or vertical
What is inferior (caudal)?
Away from the head / towards the soles of the feet
e.g. knee is inferior to the stomach
What is superior (cranial)?
Towards the head / higher or above the structure
e.g. eye is superior to nose
What is posterior/dorsal?
Towards the back of the body
e.g. spine is posterior to abs
What is anterior/ventral?
Towards the front of the body
e.g. abs are anterior to the spine
What is proximal?*
The nearest point of attachment to a limb or structure.
Towards the trunk (center of body = torso).
e. g. the elbow is proximal to the hand
e. g.2 the wrist is proximal to the fingers
What is distal?
The furthest away from the attachment or the trunk.
Away from the trunk
e.g. Hand is distal to the elbow
What is superficial/external?
Towards the skin surface/outside body.
e.g. skin is superficial to liver
What is deep/internal?
Towards the interior of the body
e.g. the liver is deep to the ribcage
What is lateral?
Away from the midline/middle of the body (vertical)
e.g. the ear is lateral to the nose
What is medial?
Towards the (vertical) midline of the body
e.g. ribcage is medial to the elbow
What is flexion?
Movement that decreases angle of a joint with respect to the anatomical position.
e.g. flexion = bending knee backwards
What is extension?
Movement that increases the angle of a joint with respect to the anatomical position
e.g. straightening the leg (unbending the knee)
What is abduction?
Movement away from the mid-line
e.g. moving arm up
What is adduction?
Movement towards the midline
e.g. moving arm back down
What is medial/internal rotation?
Rotation towards the midline
e.g. bringing your leg inwards
What is lateral/external?
Rotating movement away from the mid line
e.g. bringing your legs outwards
What is supination?
Turning palm up (hand is in supination when in anatomical position)
What is pronation?
Turning palm down (palm facing the floor)
What is mid-pronation (use key example)?
Putting key in = pronation (palm facing floor)
Turning key = mid-pronation (palm facing wall)
Turned key completely = supination (palm facing up)
What is dorsiflexion?
Decreasing the angle of the foot in regards to the anatomical position
e.g. moving foot up towards the sky
What is plantarflexion?
Increasing the angle of the foot in regards to the anatomical position
e.g. moving foot towards the floor (toes touching floor)
What is inversion?
Movement of the sole of foot towards midline
e.g. twisting ankle inwards
What is eversion?
Movement of the sole of the foot away from the midline
e.g. twisting ankle outwards
What is circumduction?
Conical movement of a limb extending from the joint at which movement is controlled.
What is opposition?
Movement that brings fingers to thumb
e.g. pinky to thumb
What is reposition?
Movement that moves thumb away from finger
What is protraction?
movement of a body part in the anterior direction = being drawn forwards
e.g. leaning forwards
What is retraction?
Movement of a body part posteriorly
e.g. leaning backwards
What is elevation?
Movement in the superior direction / going up
e.g. moving jaw up to the sky
What is depression?
Movement in the inferior direction
e.g. moving jaw towards chest
What is ipsilateral?
On the same side of the body (in regards to the midline so L&R)
What is contralateral?
On opposite sides (in regards to the midline so L&R)
