Directional Terms + Body Planes

Supine

Person laying face up

Prone

Person laying face down

Superior

Towards head

Inferior

Towards feet

Anterior

Towards the front

Posterior

Towards the back

Proximal

Close to - usually for limbs - its position relative to the body

Distal

Far from - usually for limbs

Medial

Towards the mid-line of the body

Lateral

Away from the midline of the body

Superficial

Closer to the surface

Deep

Towards the interior of the body

Sagittal Plane

Splitting the body down the middle parallel to the y-axis

Left and right

Mid Sagittal = body is split in the middle for left and right

Frontal Plane

Parallel to the y axis, but it’s cut across

Anterior and posterior

Transverse Plane

Runs parallel to the x-axis

Superior and inferior