BASIC ANATOMICAL TERMINOLOGY

ANATOMICAL POSITION
• A person in the anatomical position is standing erect (or lying supine as if erect) with the head and eyes directed
forward, the upper limbs by the sides with the palms facing forward and the lower limbs together with the toes
pointing forward.
BODY POSITION
• Prone Position – if the body is lying face down
• Supine Position – if the body is lying face up
BODY REGIONS
1. HEAD – where brain and face with eyes, nose, mouth and ears are found
2. NECK – connects head and trunk
3. TRUNK
a. Thorax – with heart and lungs
b. Abdomen – with most parts of digestive system and urinary system
c. Pelvic Cavity and Perineum – with reproductive organs and distal parts of digestive and urinary
system
4. Upper Extremities
5. Lower Extremities
ANATOMICAL PLANES
• Anatomical descriptions are also based on four imaginary planes that pass through the body in the anatomical
positions.
1. MEDIAN PLANE – the imaginary vertical line passing longitudinally through the body from front to back
dividing it into right and left halves.
2. SAGITTAL PLANE – imaginary vertical planes passing through the body parallel to the median plane dividing
this into right and left parts
- named after sagittal suture of the skull with which they are parallel
- the sagittal plane that passes through the median plane is often referred to as midsagittal
plane
3. CORONAL PLANE OR FRONTAL PLANE
-imaginary vertical planes passing through the body at right angles to the median plane,
dividing it into anterior (front) and posterior (back) portions.
- named after the coronal suture of the skull, which is in coronal plane.
4. HORIZONTAL PLANE OR TRANSVERSE PLANE OR X-SECTION
- Imaginary planes passing through the body at right angles to both the median and coronal
planes dividing the body to upper and lower parts
SECTIONS OF THE BODY
1. Longitudinal section or vertical section – body part is cut in the direction of the long axis of the body or any of its
parts; may be cut in median, sagittal, or coronal planes.
2. Transverse sections or cross section – are parts of the body which are cut at right angles to the longitudinal axis of
the body or its parts.
3. Oblique sections – are sections of the body that are not cut in one of the anatomical planes of the body (e.g. they slant
or deviate from these planes.)
TERMS OF MOVEMENTS
- Various terms are used to describe the different movements of the body
- Movements take place at joints where two or more bones meet or articulate with each other

BODY CAVITIES
- are spaces within the body that help protect, separate, and support internal organs.
- Bones, muscles, ligaments, and other structures separate the various body cavities from one
another.
ABDOMINOPELVIC REGIONS AND QUADRANTS
• To describe the location of the many abdominal and pelvic organs more easily, anatomists and clinicians use two
methods of dividing the abdominopelvic cavity into smaller areas.
• In the first method, two horizontal and two vertical lines, aligned like a tic-tac-toe grid, partition this cavity into nine
abdominopelvic regions

ABDOMINOPELVIC REGIONS AND QUADRANTS

• The second method is simpler and divides the abdominopelvic cavity into quadrants