General Anatomy Flashcards: Planes, Directions, Regions, Cavities, Quadrants, and Abdominopelvic Regions

A. Body Planes

  • Purpose of body planes
    • Define linear relationships between body regions, organs, and tissues.
    • Important for describing medical imaging and dissection techniques.
    • Use textbook Figure 1.5 as a guide to identify each plane.
    • Activity: groups use twine to create two examples of each plane on anatomical models.
  • Sagittal Plane
    • Passes vertically through the body, dividing it into right and left portions.
    • Median (Midsagittal) Plane – a sagittal plane that divides the body into equal right and left halves.
    • Parasagittal Plane – not pictured; divides the body into unequal right and left halves.
  • Frontal (Coronal) Plane
    • Passes vertically through the body, dividing it into anterior and posterior portions.
  • Transverse (Horizontal) Plane
    • Passes through the body perpendicular to its long axis, dividing the body or organ into superior and inferior portions.
  • Oblique Plane
    • Not pictured; any plane that is not parallel to any of the other planes; often diagonal.

B. Directional Terms

  • Purpose
    • Designate relationships between organs and tissues of the body.
    • These terms align with the descriptions in Table 1.1 and Figure 1.6.
    • Used to compare structural landmarks on the body.
  • Practice
    • Student groups should use anatomical models to practice using the terminology.
  • Example question
    • The nose is _ to the mouth.
    • Answer: superior (cranial).
  • Note
    • The course emphasizes learning these terms as the body’s own structures will be the reference.

C. Body Regions

  • Purpose
    • Use Table 1.2 and Figure 1.7 to identify body regions on the torso model and lab partners.
    • Many regions can be subdivided; use the most specific description possible.
    • Example: the forehead is cephalic and facial, but a pointer on the forehead is identified as the frontal region.
  • Nomenclature
    • When listing regions, the word "region" should follow each region name (e.g., femoral region).
  • Reference materials
    • Table 1.2 provides region names and descriptions.
    • Figure 1.7 shows major regional terms.

D. Body Cavities

  • Definition
    • Body cavities are potential spaces bordered by bones, muscles, and membranes.
    • Major purpose is to protect, separate, and organize contents.
    • A single organ can be housed in more than one cavity (e.g., heart in ventral, thoracic, mediastinal, and pericardial cavities).
  • Orientation aid
    • Figure 1.8 shows body cavities on the torso model; twine and pipe cleaners can outline borders.
  • Posterior (Dorsal) Cavity
    • Cranial Cavity – formed by the cranium; houses the brain, meninges, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
    • Vertebral Cavity – formed by the vertebral column; houses the spinal cord, meninges, and CSF.
  • Ventral Cavity
    • Subdivided into two main cavities separated by the diaphragm:
    • Thoracic Cavity – superior portion of the ventral body cavity; bordered by the chest wall and the diaphragm.
    • Pericardial Cavity – central cavity that contains the heart.
    • Right and Left Pleural Cavities – lateral cavities that contain the lungs.
    • Mediastinal Cavity (Mediastinum) – central cavity that contains the pericardial cavity, heart, thymus, esophagus, trachea, and major blood vessels.
    • Abdominopelvic Cavity – includes all space below the diaphragm; subdivided into Abdominal and Pelvic cavities (no physical partition between them).
    • Abdominal Cavity – contains the stomach, spleen, pancreas, liver, gall bladder, small intestine, most of the large intestine, adrenal glands, ureters, and kidneys.
    • Pelvic Cavity – contains the urinary bladder, cecum, sigmoid colon, rectum, appendix, and reproductive organs.

E. Body Quadrants

  • Arrangement
    • The abdominal structures can be referenced using four body quadrants.
    • Produced by two perpendicular lines intersecting at the navel (umbilicus).
    • Figure 1.10 helps identify the quadrants.
  • Quadrants
    • Right Upper Quadrant (RUQ)
    • Left Upper Quadrant (LUQ)
    • Right Lower Quadrant (RLQ)
    • Left Lower Quadrant (LLQ)

F. Abdominopelvic Regions

  • Overview
    • The abdomen can be subdivided into nine abdominopelvic regions.
    • Use Figure 1.10 to identify regions and demarcation lines.
    • Four twine pieces create the tic-tac-toe grid.
  • Demarcation lines
    • Vertical lines: midclavicular lines (through the midpoint of the clavicles).
    • Horizontal lines:
    • Subcostal line – superior horizontal line; runs from right to left along the inferior borders of costal cartilages (connecting the 10th rib to the sternum).
    • Intertubercular line – inferior horizontal line; runs from right to left through the anterior superior iliac spines of the pelvis.
  • Regions to identify
    • Epigastric
    • Right Hypochondriac
    • Left Hypochondriac
    • Umbilical
    • Right Lateral (Lumbar)
    • Left Lumbar
    • Hypogastric (Pubic)
    • Right Iliac (Inguinal)
    • Left Iliac (Inguinal)

1.4 Table 1.2: Human Body Regions

  • Abdominal — Region inferior to the thorax (chest) and superior to the pelvic brim of the hip bones
  • Nasal — Nose
  • Antebrachial — Forearm (the portion of the upper limb between the elbow and the wrist)
  • Occipital — Posterior aspect of the head
  • Antecubital — Region anterior to the elbow; also known as the cubital region
  • Olecranal — Posterior aspect of the elbow
  • Auricular — Visible surface structures of the ear
  • Axillary — Armpit
  • Brachial — Arm (the portion of the upper limb between the shoulder and the elbow)
  • Oral — Mouth
  • Orbital — Eye
  • Palmar — Palm of the hand
  • Buccal — Cheek
  • Calcaneal — Heel of the foot
  • Carpal — Wrist
  • Patellar — Kneecap
  • Pectoral — Chest, includes the mammary region
  • Pelvic — Pelvis
  • Cephalic — Head
  • Perineal — Diamond-shaped region between the thighs that contains the anus and selected external reproductive organs
  • Pelvis — Pelvis (region name reference note appears here again in the table)
  • Foot — Foot
  • Cervical — Neck
  • Pes — Foot
  • Coxal — Hip
  • Plantar — Sole of the foot
  • Cranial — Skull
  • Pollex — Thumb
  • Crural — Leg (the portion of the lower limb between the knee and the ankle)
  • Popliteal — Area posterior to the knee
  • Deltoid — Shoulder
  • Pubic — Anterior region of the pelvis
  • Digital — Fingers or toes (also called phalangeal)
  • Radial — Lateral aspect (thumb side) of the forearm
  • Dorsal — Back
  • Sacral — Posterior region between the hip bones
  • Femoral — Thigh
  • Scapular — Posterior region between the hip bones; Shoulder blade
  • Fibular — Lateral aspect of the leg
  • Sternal — Anterior middle region of the thorax
  • Frontal — Forehead
  • Sural — Calf (posterior part of the leg)
  • Gluteal — Buttock
  • Tarsal — Proximal part of foot and ankle
  • Hallux — Great toe
  • Thoracic — Chest region
  • Inguinal — Groin (sometimes used to indicate just the crease where the thigh meets the trunk)
  • Tibial — Shin (medial part of the leg)
  • Lumbar — The "small of the back": the inferior part of the back between the ribs and the pelvis
  • Ulnar — Medial aspect of the forearm
  • Mammary — Breast
  • Manus — Hand
  • Mental — Chin
  • Umbilical — Navel
  • Vertebral — Spinal column
  • Note: The word region should follow each region name listed in the table (e.g., femoral region).