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Asked by: Abigail Omnes
medical health bone and joint conditionsHow do you use anatomical terms?
Anatomic terms describe the directions within the body as well as the body's reference planes, cavities and regions.
Other directional terms:
Other directional terms:
- Intermediate – means between—your heart is intermediate to your lungs.
- Caudal – at or near the tail or posterior end of the body.
- Visceral – may be used instead of deep.
Subsequently, one may also ask, what are the anatomical directions?
Anatomical directional terms are like the directions on a compass rose of a map. Like the directions, North, South, East and West, they can be used to describe the locations of structures in relation to other structures or locations in the body.
- The sagittal plane or median plane (longitudinal, anteroposterior) is a plane parallel to the sagittal suture.
- The coronal plane or frontal plane (vertical) divides the body into dorsal and ventral (back and front, or posterior and anterior) portions.
Hereof, why do we use anatomical terms?
The anatomical position is of importance in anatomy because it is the position of reference for anatomical nomenclature. Anatomic terms such as anterior and posterior, medial and lateral, abduction and adduction, and so on apply to the body when it is in the anatomical position.
Anatomical position is the description of any region or part of the body in a specific stance. In the anatomical position, the body is upright, directly facing the observer, feet flat and directed forward. The upper limbs are at the body's sides with the palms facing forward.