The human body - positional and directional terms - ch 3

Question 1

When the body is in the anatomical position, name the 12 common terms to describe the location of an organ or body structure in relation to another and give an explanation of each position.

Answer 1

1. anterior - also known as ventral & refers to being in
   front of an organ or at the front of the body
2. posterior - also known as dorsal and refers to
   behind an organ or at the back of the body
3. deep - refers to being further or well away from the
   surface of the
4. superficial - refers to on or close to the surface of
   the body
5. proximal - refers to locations that are close to the
   point of origin of a structure or attachment to the
   body
6. distal - refers to locations that are further away from
   the point of origin of a structure or attachment to the
   body
7. inferior - refers to organs or structures that are
   below another
8. superior - refers to organs or structures that are
   above another
9. medial - refers to organs or structures closer to the
   midline of the body
10. lateral - refers to organs or structures that are
    further away from the midline of the body
11. supine - refers to a person lying face up
12. prone - refers to a person lying face down