Medical Language for Modern Health Care - Chapter 3: Body as a Whole

Vocabulary flashcards covering cellular organization, tissue types, anatomical directions, planes, body cavities, and abdominal regions from Chapter 3: Body as a Whole.

Levels of Body Organization

The body's hierarchical levels of structure: organs, tissues, cells, organelles, molecules, and atoms.

Zygote

Fertilized egg resulting from the union of a female egg and male sperm.

Basic Functions of Life

Essential biological processes carried out by cells: manufacture, production, communication, replication, and reproduction.

Structure of Cells

The cell composition consisting of the cell membrane, cytoplasm, apical surface, nucleus, nucleolus, smooth and rough endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes, lysosomes, and mitochondria.

Nucleus

The organelle that directs all activities of the cell and contains chromatin.

Nucleolus

Structure within the nucleus that manufactures ribosomes, which in turn manufacture protein.

Primary Tissue Groups

The four main groups of tissues in the body: connective, epithelial, muscle, and nervous tissue.

Connective Tissue in the Knee Joint

Structures stabilizing the joint between the femur, tibia, and fibula, including the anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments, medial and lateral collateral ligaments, medial and lateral menisci, and patellar ligament.

Organ Systems

The 11 functional body systems: integumentary, skeletal, muscular, nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, digestive, respiratory, and reproductive.

Anatomical Positions and Directions

Standard directional descriptors relative to the human anatomical body, including superior (cephalic), inferior (caudal), proximal, distal, medial, lateral, and midline.

Superior (Cephalic)

Refers to what is above something or near to the head.

Inferior (Caudal)

Refers to what is below something or near to the tail.

Distal

Situated away from the center of the body or point of attachment.

Proximal

Situated close to the center of the body or point of attachment.

Medial

Refers to being close to the midline.

Lateral

Refers to being further away from the midline.

Midline

An imaginary line that divides the body into equal left and right sides.

Supine

Lying flat on the back.

Prone

Lying flat on the stomach.

Anatomical Planes

Imaginary flat surfaces passing through the body: sagittal plane, frontal plane, and transverse plane.

Sagittal Plane

Divides the body into equal left and right sides.

Frontal Plane

Divides the body into front (anterior) and back (posterior) sides.

Transverse Plane

Divides the body into cranial and caudal portions.

Body Cavities

Internal spaces containing body organs, including the cranial cavity, spinal cavity, thoracic cavity (mediastinum, pleural, pericardial), and abdominopelvic cavity (abdominal and pelvic).

Cranial Cavity

The space inside the skull.

Spinal Cavity

The space in which the spinal cord passes.

Thoracic Cavity

The upper body cavity that houses the lungs and heart.

Abdominopelvic Cavity

The cavity formed by the combination of the abdominal and pelvic cavities.

Diaphragm

Muscular partition that sits between the thoracic cavity and the abdominal cavity.

Abdominal Quadrants and Regions

Divisions of the abdomen consisting of 4 quadrants (RUQ, LUQ, RLQ, LLQ) and 9 regions (epigastric, hypochondriac, umbilical, lumbar, hypogastric, inguinal).

Abdominal Quadrants

The four main divisions of the abdomen: right upper quadrant, left upper quadrant, right lower quadrant, and left lower quadrant.

Subcostal Line

The horizontal line separating the epigastric and umbilical regions.

Intertubercular Line

The horizontal line separating the umbilical and hypogastric regions.