Organisation of the body

Question 1

Define the Anatomical position

Answer 1

Body- Upright
Head- Upright/ Facing forward
Arms At the body's side 
Hands- Palms facing forward 
Feet- Flat and together or slightly apart

Question 2

What are the 4 body planes

Answer 2

Coronal plane- It vertically divides the body into anterior (front) and posterior (back).
Transverse plane- It divides the body into superior (top) and inferior (bottom) parts, runs from the front to the back of the body.
Sagittal plane- It divides the body into medial and lateral
Mid-Sagittal plane- It divides the body in the middle (longitudinally) into left and right parts.

Question 3

Name the 4 body cavities and give two examples

Answer 3

Cranial Cavity- Brain
Thoracic Cavity- Lungs and the Heart
Abdominal Cavity- Liver and Stomach
Pelvic Cavity- Uterus and Bladder

Question 4

Define the following terms:

1. Superior

2. Inferior

Answer 4

Superior- Towards the head or top of the structure, e.g The lungs are superior to the stomach
Inferior- Towards the bottom of the structure, e.g the feet is inferior to the lungs

Question 5

Define the following terms:

3. Superficial

4. Deep

Answer 5

Superficial- Towards or on the surface, e.g the skin is superficial to the muscles.
Deep- Deep towards the tissue, e.g the muscles is deep to the skin

Question 6

Define the following terms:

5. Anterior

6. Posterior

Answer 6

Anterior- The front of the body, ‘ Anterior View’ e.g the sternum is anterior to the heart.
Posterior- The back of the body, ‘Posterior View’ e.g the heart is posterior to the sternum.

Question 7

Define the following terms:

7. Medial

8. Lateral

Answer 7

Medial- Towards the midline of the body, e.g the nose is medial to the cheek.
Lateral- Away from the midline of the body, e.g the ears are lateral to the nose.

Question 8

Define the following terms:

9. Proximal

10. Distal

Answer 8

Proximal- Closer to the point of attachment to the body, e.g the wrist is proximal to the hand.
Distal- Away from the point of attachment, e.g the elbow is distal to the shoulder.