Anatomical Position and Planes' Terminology

Frontal (coronal) plane:

A longitudinal plane that divides the body (or an organ) into anterior and posterior parts.

Transverse plane

A plane that runs horizontally, dividing the body into superior and inferior parts. These sections are also commonly called cross sections.

Sagittal plane

A plane that runs lengthwise or longitudinally down the length of thebody, dividing it into right and left parts, is a sagittal plane. If it divides the body intoequal parts, down the midline of the body, it is called a median, or midsagittal, plane.

Anterior/posterior (front/back)

In humans the most anterior structures are those that are most forward-the face, chest, and abdomen. Posterior structures are those toward the backside of the body.

Cephalad/caudad (caudal) (toward the head/toward the tail)

In humans these terms are used interchangeably with superior and inferior. But in four-legged animals,they are synonyms of anterior and posterior, respectively.

Dorsal/ventral (backside/belly side)

Meaning "back," the term dorsal refers to the animal's back or the backside of any other structures. The term ventral, meaning "belly,"always refers to the belly side of animals. In humans the terms ventral and dorsal are used interchangeably with the terms anterior and posterior, but in four-legged animals ventral and dorsal mean inferior and superior, respectively.

Medial/lateral (toward the mid-line/away from the mid-line or median plane)

Medial structures are closer to the body mid-line than are lateral structures.

Superficial/deep (toward or at the body surface/away from the body surface or more internal)

These terms locate body organs according to their relative closeness to thebody surface. For example, the skin is superficial to the skeletal muscles

Proximal/distal (nearer the trunk or attached end/farther from the trunk or point of attachment)

These terms locate various areas along the body limbs or an elongatedorgan such as the intestine. For example, the fingers are distal to the elbow; the knee isproximal to the toes.

Superior/inferior (above/below)

These terms refer to the location of a structure along the long axis of the body. Superior structures appear above other structures, and inferior structures are always below other body parts.