PLANES OF THE BODY

Anatomical Directional Terms:

Anterior: In front of, front
Posterior: After, behind, following, toward the rear

Distal: Away from, farther from the origin

Proximal: Near, closer to the origin

Dorsal: Near the upper surface, toward the back

Ventral: Toward the bottom, toward the belly

Superior: Above, over

Inferior: Below, under

Lateral: Toward the side, away from the mid-line

Medial: Toward the mid-line, middle, away from the side

Rostral: Toward the front

Caudal: Toward the back, toward the tail

Bilateral: Involving both sides of the body

Unilateral: Involving one side of the body

Ipsilateral: On the same side of the body

Contralateral: On opposite sides of the body

Parietal: Relating to a body cavity wall

Visceral: Relating to organs within body cavities

Axial: Around a central axis

Intermediate: Between two structures
Abduction and Adduction
Abduction and adduction are two terms that are used to describe
movements towards or away from the midline of the body.
Abduction is a movement away from the midline – just as abducting
someone is to take them away. For example, abduction of the shoulder
raises the arms out to the sides of the body.
Adduction is a movement towards the midline. Adduction of the hip
squeezes the legs together.
In fingers and toes, the midline used is not the midline of the body, but
of the hand and foot respectively. Therefore, abducting the fingers
spreads them out.
Medial and Lateral Rotation
Medial and lateral rotation describe
movement of the limbs around their long
axis:
Medial rotation is a rotational movement
towards the midline. It is sometimes
referred to as internal rotation. To
understand this, we have two scenarios to
imagine. Firstly, with a straight leg, rotate
it to point the toes inward. This is medial
rotation of the hip. Secondly, imagine you
are carrying a tea tray in front of you, with
elbow at 90 degrees. Now rotate the arm,
bringing your hand towards your opposite
hip (elbow still at 90 degrees). This is
internal rotation of the shoulder.
Lateral rotation is a rotating movement
away from the midline. This is in the
opposite direction to the movements
described above.
Circumduction is the movement of the limb, hand, or fingers in a
circular pattern, using the sequential combination of flexion,
adduction, extension, and abduction motions. Adduction/abduction
and circumduction take place at the shoulder, hip, wrist,
metacarpophalangeal, and metatarsophalangeal joints.

Circumduction is the circular movement of a limb, for an arm the

palm would remain facing the same direction as the arm describes a
conical motion. Rotation is the turning around the axis.