1. Body Planes and Directional Terms

2. health care workers to know
Why is it important for
health care workers to know
Anatomical terms?

3. Identify areas of the body For treatments, injections,
To care for clients,
you must be able to
Identify areas of the body
For treatments, injections,
Or diagnoses

4. Anatomical Position
Anatomical position means that the body is standing erect, facing forward with the arms at the sides and the palms facing forward.

5. Medical Terms Associated with Directions
anterior……………………….front
caudal………………………….tail, (downward)
cephalic……………………....head, (upward)
distal……………………………away (from the point of reference)
dorsal…………………………..back
inferior…………………….... below
lateral…………………….…….side

6. medial………………………middle
posterior…………………….back, behind
proximal……………………near(the point of reference)
superior……………………..above
ventral………………………belly (front)

7. Body Cavities The body has 2 main cavities: Dorsal cavity (back).
Ventral cavity (front).
Pelvic cavity
Abdominal cavity
Diaphragm
Thoracic cavity
Cranial cavity
Dorsal cavity
Ventral cavity
Spinal
cavity

8. Dorsal Cavity Located on the posterior (dorsal) side of the body
It consists of 2 cavities
Cranial Cavity - The bones of the skull create the cranial cavity to protect the brain
Spinal (vertebral) Cavity -Formed by the vertebrae of the spine that surrounds the spinal cord.

9. Ventral Cavity
Ventral Cavity – located on the anterior/ventral side of the body. It is made up of three cavities. Two are divided by the diaphragm.

10. Thoracic Cavity
This is the portion of the Ventral Cavity superior to the diaphragm.
It contains the heart, lungs and major vessels

11. Abdominal Cavity
Located inferior to the diaphragm. It includes the following organs:
Stomach
Spleen
Liver
Gallbladder
pancreas
Small intestine
Most of the large intestine

12. Pelvic Cavity
The pelvic cavity is surrounded by the pelvic bones. The pelvic cavity contains:
Urinary bladder
male and female reproductive organs
Parts of the digestive system

13. Planes of the body Body planes are imaginary lines that divide the body into sections
Midsagittal plane – divides the body into equal right and left sides.
sagittal plane – divides the body into 2 parts, right and left.
Frontal or coronal plane – divides the body into anterior and posterior sections.
Transverse plane – divides the body horizontally into a top, or superior, part and a bottom, or inferior, part.

14. Planes of the body Superior Frontal Proximal Distal Midsagittal
Inferior
Midsagittal
Transverse
Frontal
Superior
Anterior
Lateral
Posterior
Distal
Proximal
Medial

15. Divides body into equal right & left halves.
Midsagittal Plane
Divides body into equal right & left halves.

16. Frontal (Coronal) Plane
Divides body into front & back portions

17. Divides body into upper & lower portions.
Transverse Plane
Divides body into upper & lower portions.

18. Abdominal Quadrants
The abdominal/pelvic cavity is so large that it is divided into regions
One method of division is quadrants. Quadrants divide the abdominal/pelvic cavity into four sections using the belly button as the point of reference for both the horizontal and vertical lines

19. Abdominal Regions
Epigastric – above the stomach
Umbilical - near the belly button
Hypogastric –below the stomach
Hypochondriac – below the ribs
Lumbar/Lateral – in between the hypocondriac and iliac
Iliac/inguinal – near the groin
A more precise method of division is abdominal regions. This method divides the area into a tic tac toe board