HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

ACTIVITY NO.1
DIRECTIONAL TERMS

NAME:
GRADE AND SECTION:

1. The Language of Anatomy – Anatomical Positions and Directional Terms

a. _________________________ – body is erect with the feet
parallel and the arms hanging at the sides with the palms facing Right Left
forwards. Realize that pictures given in textbooks are “mirror
images”
b. Directional terms allow us to explain exactly where one body
structure is in relation to another.
1. _________________________ (cranial or cephalad) –
toward the head end or upper part of a structure or the
body; above
2. _________________________ (caudal) – away from
the head end or toward the lower part of structure or
the body; below
3. _________________________ (ventral) – toward or at
the front of the body; in front of
4. _________________________ (dorsal) – toward or at
the backside of the body; behind
5. _________________________ – toward or at the
midline of the body; on the inner side of
6. _________________________ – away from the midline of the body; on
the outer side of
7. _________________________ – between a more medial and a more
lateral structure
8. _________________________ – close to the origin of the body part or the
point of attachment of a limb to the body trunk
9. _________________________ – farther from the origin of a body part or
the point of attachment of a limb to the body trunk
10. _________________________ – toward or at the body surface
11. _________________________ – away from the body surface; more
internal
c. Anterior body landmarks
1. Abdominal – anterior body trunk; inferior to ribs
2. Acromial – point of shoulder
3. _________________________ – anterior surface of elbow
 4. _________________________ – armpit
5. _________________________ – arm
6. Buccal – cheek area
7. Carpal – wrist
8. Cervical – neck region
9. Coxal – hip
10._________________________ – leg
11.Digital – fingers, toes
12._________________________ – thigh
13.Fibular – lateral part of leg
14._________________________ – area where thigh meets body trunk; groin
15.Nasal – nose area
16._________________________ – mouth
17._________________________ – eye area
18._________________________ – anterior knee
19.Pelvic – area overlying the pelvis anteriorly
20.Pubic – genital region
21._________________________ – breastbone area
22.Tarsal – ankle region
23._________________________ – chest
24.Umbilical – navel
d. Posterior body landmarks
1. _________________________ – head
2. Deltoid – curve of shoulder formed by large deltoid muscle
3. Gluteal – buttock
4. _________________________ – area of back between ribs and hips
5. Occipital – posterior surface of head
6. _________________________ – posterior knee area
7. Sacral – area between hips
8. Scapular – shoulder blade region
9. Sural – posterior surface of lower leg; the calf
10. _________________________ – area of spine
e. Body planes and sections
1. When preparing to look at the internal structures of the body, medical students
find it necessary to make a section, or cut. When the section is made through
the body wall or through an organ, it is made along an imaginary line called a
plane.
2. _________________________ section – cut made along the lengthwise, or
longitudinal, plane of the body, dividing the body into right and left parts. If
 the cut is made down the median plane of the body and the right and left parts
are equal in size, it is called a midsagittal or median section.
3. _________________________section – cut made along a lengthwise plane
that the divides the body (or organ) into anterior and posterior parts. Also
called a coronal section.
4. _________________________ section – cut made along a horizontal plane,
dividing the body or organ into superior and inferior parts. Also called a cross
section.
f. Body cavities
1. _________________________ body cavity includes the cranial and spinal
cavity.
a. _________________________ cavity – space inside the skull.
Protects the brain.
b. _________________________ cavity – extends from the cranial
cavity nearly to the end of the vertebral column. The spinal cord,
which is a continuation of the brain, is protected by the vertebrae,
which surround the spinal cavity.
2. _________________________ body cavity is larger than the dorsal body
cavity and contains all the structures of the chest and abdomen.
a. _________________________ cavity – contains the lungs, heart. The
central region of the thoracic cavity, which contains the heart, is called
the mediastinum.
b. _________________________ cavity – separated from the thoracic
cavity by the diaphragm (layer of muscle underneath the lungs).
a. Abdominal cavity contains the liver, stomach, intestines
b. Pelvic cavity contains the reproductive organs, bladder, rectum.
c. No actual physical structure divides the abdominopelvic cavity
g. Body regions with the abdominopelvic cavity
1. _________________________ region – centermost region, deep to and
surrounding the umbilicus (navel)
2. _________________________ region – superior to the umbilical region
3. _________________________ (pubic) region – inferior to the umbilical
region
4. Right iliac or right _________________________ region – lateral to the
hypogastric region. Includes the superior part of the hip bone (known as the
ilium)
5. Left iliac or left inguinal region – lateral to the hypogastric region. Includes
the superior part of the hip bone
6. Right _________________________ region – lateral to the umbilical region,
on the right side
7. Left lumbar region – lateral to the umbilical region, on the left side
8. Right _________________________ region – flanks the epigastric region and
contains the lower ribs on the right side (chondro = cartilage)
9. Left hypochondriac region – flanks the epigastric region and contains the
lower ribs on the left side.