Terms, body planes

Question 1

Describe the anatomical position.

Answer 1

Standing upright, facing forward, feet facing forward and parallel, palms facing forward, thumbs out at 90* angle.

Question 2

Describe the anatomical planes.

Answer 2

Transverse plane is a horizontal line that splits body into “superior” and “inferior” halves.
Sagittal plane is a vertical line that splits body into left and right halves.
Coronal plane is a vertical line that splits body into front (anterior) and back (posterior) halves.
All planes are at 90* to eachother.

Question 3

Describe the terms of position - Anterior and posterior

Answer 3

Anterior (ventral) and posterior (dorsal).
E.g. the heart is posterior to the sternum / the triceps brachii muscle is anterior to the biceps brachii.

Question 4

Describe the terms of position - Proximal and distal.

Answer 4

Proximal and distal are terms of position used for structures that are considered to have a beginning and an end. Proximal = closer to the origin or trunk, distal = further from the origin or trunk.

Question 5

Describe the terms of position - Superior or inferior.

Answer 5

Superior (cranial) and inferior (causal):
Superior = closer to the head, inferior = closer to the feet.
E.g. the stomach is inferior to the heart.

Question 6

Describe the terms of position - Medial and lateral.

Answer 6

Medial and Lateral:
Medial = towards the midline, lateral = away from the midline.
E.g. the nose is medial to the ears.

Question 7

Name and describe the positional terms of laterality.

Answer 7

Unilateral = one side of the body
Bilateral = two sides of the body
Ipsilateral = on the same side of the body.
Contralateral = on opposite sides of the body.

Question 8

Describe the positional term; parietal.

Answer 8

Relating to body cavity wall (pariet = cavity wall)

Question 9

Describe the positional term; visceral.

Answer 9

Relating to organs within body cavities.

Question 10

Describe the positional term; prone.

Answer 10

Subject is lying on stomach.

Question 11

Describe the positional term;
supine.

Answer 11

Supine (recumbant) is when subject is lying on back.

Question 12

Describe the positional term;
trunk.

Answer 12

Refers to the body minus the 4 limbs.

Question 13

Describe the positional term;
median.

Answer 13

Midline of body structure.

Question 14

Describe the positional term;
superficial.

Answer 14

Nearer the surface of the body.

Question 15

Describe the positional term;
deep.

Answer 15

Further from surface of body.

Question 16

State which cavity’s reside in the ventral cavity.

Answer 16

Thoracic cavity (heart, lungs)
Abdominal cavity (spleen, intestines, kidneys, liver)
Abdominal pelvic
Pelvic.

Question 17

State which cavity’s reside in the dorsal cavity.

Answer 17

Cranial cavity
Spinal cavity

Question 18

Name the seven body regions (that would be used when learning anatomy regionally).

Answer 18

Head & neck
Thorax
Abdomen
Pelvic & perineum
Upper limb
Lower limb
Back

Question 19

Explain the terms of movement; flexion and extension.

Answer 19

Flexion means to bend forwards or anteriorly, reducing the anterior angle, causing flexion.
Extension refers to bending backwards and increasing the anterior angle, creating the extension.

Question 20

Explain the terms of movement; abduction and adduction.

Answer 20

Abduction refers to the movement away from the midline.
Adduction refers to movement towards the midline of the body.

Question 21

Explain the terms of movement; Medial and lateral rotation.

Answer 21

Medial rotation means to rotate internally, towards the midline.
Lateral rotation means to rotate externally away from the midline.

Question 22

Explain the term of movement; “Circumduction”

Answer 22

This is a combination of movement, combining; flexion, extension, abduction and adduction.

Question 23

Explain the terms of movement; Pronation and supination.

Answer 23

Refers to only the forearm.
Supination is when the radius and ulna are parallel to each other.
Pronation is when the radius rotates over the ulna.

Question 24

Explain the terms of movement; dorsiflexion and plantarflexion.

Answer 24

Refers to movements at the ankle.
Dorsum is the superior surface of the foot.
Plantar is the sole of the foot.
Dorsiflexion is the backwards bending motion of the dorsum of the foot, with the foot pointing into the air.
Plantarflexion is the flexion of the ankle/foot so that the plantar surface of the foot points inferiorly.

Question 25

Explain the terms of movement;
inversion and extersion.

Answer 25

Refers to movements at the foot (not the ankle joint, performed by the small joints of the foot below the ankle joint)
Inversion involves the movement of the sole of the foot towards the midline (median plane) so that the sole of the foot points in a medial direction.
Eversion involves the movement of the sole of the foot away from the midline (median plane) so that the sole of the foot is facing in a lateral direction.

Question 26

Describe the terms of movement;
elevation and depression.

Answer 26

Refers to the movement of the scapula.
Elevation refers to movement in a superior direction (e.g. a shoulder shrug).
Depression refers to movement in an inferior direction.

Question 27

Describe the terms of movement;
protraction and retraction.

Answer 27

Refers to the movement of the scapula.
Protraction refers to the forward movement of the shoulder (e.g. Gaten Matarazzo)
Retraction refers to the backward movement of the shoulder.