Medical Terminology: Body Planes, Directions, Prefixes, and Suffixes

Anatomical position

Refers to the human body in a standing position with the palms facing forward

Superior (cranial)

Toward the head end of the body

Inferior (caudal)

Away from the head end

Anterior (ventral)

Front side of body

Posterior (dorsal)

Back side of body

Medial

Toward the midline of body

Lateral

Side of body; away from the midline of body

Proximal

Closest to the point of origin or attachment

Distal

Away from or farthest from the origin or point of attachment

Sagittal

A vertical plane that divides the body or any of its parts into right and left portions

Midsagittal

A plane that equally divides the body or any of its parts into right and left halves

Coronal (frontal)

A lengthwise plane that divides the body or any of its parts into anterior (front) and posterior (back) portions

Transverse (horizontal)

A crosswise plane that divides the body or any of its parts into superior (top) and inferior (bottom) portions

ab-

Away from

acou-

Hearing

ad-

Toward, near

ante-

Before

pre-

Before

pro-

Before

dis-

Apart from

anti-

Against

contra-

Against

counter-

Against

brady-

Slow

tachy-

Rapid

circum-

Around

peri-

Around

co-

With, together

con-

With, together

sym-

With, together

syn-

With, together

endo-

Within, inner

intra-

Within, inside

eso-

Within

epi-

Over, above

exo-

Outside, outer layer

extra-

Outside, beyond

hyper-

Above

super-

Above

supra-

Above

hypo-

Under

sub-

Under, beneath

retro-

Behind, backward

adeno-

Gland

angi-

Vessel

arthro-

Joint

baro-

Pressure

brachi-

Arm

cardio-

Heart

cephal

Head

cerebo-

Brain

cervic-

Neck

chondr-

Cartilage

chole-

Bile

cyt-

Cell

den-

Tooth

derm-

Skin

diure-

Urinate

edem-

Swelling

dura

Hard

entero-

Intestine

gastr-

Stomach

glosso-

Tongue

glute-

Buttock

hemo/hemato-

Blood

hepat-

Liver

jugul-

Throat

juxta-

Near, close to

labi-

Lip

mamm-/pectus

Breast

myo-

Muscle

oculo-

Eye

papill-

Nipple

pod-

Foot

rhino-

Nose

septi-

Rotten

thromb-

Clot

vagus

Wanderer (travels)

-algia

Pain in a certain part

-cide

Destroy or kill

-clast

Break apart

-ectomy/-tomy

Cut out or remove

-emia

Condition of blood

-gram

Recorded data

-graph

Instrument used to record data

-ia/ -ism

Condition

-opia

Defect of eye

-pathy

Disease

-phobia

Fear of

-plasty

Reconstruction of a part

-plegia

Paralysis

-itis

Inflammation of

-logy

Study of