1: Introduction to Anatomical Terminology
- Page ID
- 93610
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By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:
- Demonstrate the anatomical position
- Describe the human body using directional and regional terms
- Identify three planes most commonly used in the study of anatomy
- Distinguish between the posterior (dorsal) and anterior (ventral) body cavities, identifying their subdivisions and representative organs found in each
- Describe a serous membrane and explain its function
Anatomists and health care providers use terminology that can be bewildering to the uninitiated. However, the purpose of this language is not to confuse, but rather to increase precision and reduce medical errors. For example, is a scar “above the wrist” located on the forearm two or three inches away from the hand? Or is it at the base of the hand? Is it on the palm-side or back-side? By using precise anatomical terminology, we eliminate ambiguity. Anatomical terms derive from ancient Greek and Latin words. Because these languages are no longer used in everyday conversation, the meaning of their words does not change.
Anatomical terms are made up of roots, prefixes, and suffixes. The root of a term often refers to an organ, tissue, or condition, whereas the prefix or suffix often describes the root. For example, in the disorder hypertension, the prefix “hyper-” means “high” or “over,” and the root word “tension” refers to pressure, so the word “hypertension” refers to abnormally high blood pressure.
This chapter is adapted from Menefee, Whitney, Julie Jenks, Chiara Mazzatte, & Kim-Leloni Nguyen. 2021. "1.6: Anatomical Terminology" in Human Anatomy (OERI). https://med.libretexts.org/Bookshelv...al_Terminology. shared under a CC BY license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Whitney Menefee, Julie Jenks, Chiara Mazzasette, & Kim-Leiloni Nguyen (ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative) .