Name ______

Orientation to Your Maniken® - 50 Informal Points

*Use complete sentences wherever possible.

Introduction

Congratulations you have a child! You have decided if its a boy or girl and have named it! Throughout the Human Body Systems course, you will model human anatomy and explore human physiology on your own two-foot skeletal Maniken®. You will build muscles, create blood vessels and nerves, and sculpt a brain. You have decided on gender and in the future will pick the eye color and other key traits, and watch your Maniken® come alive with clay organs and tissues. This is a year-long project designed to be both fun and educational!

In this activity, you will learn terminology that will help you navigate human anatomy.

·  Directional terms are words used to describe the location of one structure in relation to another. These terms are also used to indicate specific locations on organs or bones.

·  Regional terms are words used to describe specific regions or locations on the body.

You will use both types of terms throughout the year to orient yourself around the amazing human body and to build accurate anatomy on your Maniken®.

Procedure

Part I: Directional Terms

1.  Use the Internet to define the following directional terms. Provide two examples for each to make the definitions understandable and real to you.

Definitions / Example #1 / Example #2
Anterior – Front (top) of body
Posterior – Back (hind) of body

/ The belly button is an anterior structure on a human.
The face is an anterior structure on a human.
The back of the head is a posterior structure on a human.
The whole head is an anterior structure on a dog. / The back is a posterior structure on a human.
Inferior – Situated closer to the feet
Superior – Situated closer to the head
/ The chin is superior to the elbow, but the elbow is superior to the knee. / The knee is inferior to the elbow.
Medial – Situated closer to the mid line of the body
Lateral – Situated closer to the side of the body
/ Hips are lateral to the belly button. / The belly button is medial to the hips.
Distal – Situated away from a point of attachment on the body
Proximal – Situated near a point of attachment on the body
/ The hand is distal to the elbow.
The elbow is proximal to the hand. / The knee is proximal to the foot.
The foot is distal to the knee.
Superficial – Closer to the surface of the body
Deep – Deeper inside the body
/ The rib cage is superficial to the heart. / The heart is deep to the rib cage.
Ventral – Front of body (same as anterior in human); belly side of 4-legged animal
Dorsal – Back of body (same as posterior in human); Back of 4- legged animal

/ The belly button is a ventral structure on a human and a dog. / The back is a dorsal structure on a human and a dog.

2.  Create a flag for each term. Write the name of the term directly on the flag.

3.  Place these flags on your Maniken®. Choose placement that shows the difference between each pair of terms. Be able to explain your reasoning. You may find that drawing an arrow on your tape flag will help you in your explanation. The examples you provided in the table in #1 will help with this activity.

4.  After you have placed all your flags on the Maniken take a few pictures for reference and then share your placements with a friend as well as observe where they have placed theirs. You many want to take a few pictures of your partner’s Maniken too since its most likely a little different. Then, answer the following questions:

a.  Did your partner have different examples than you did for each pair of words? If so how were they different?

b.  Even though your partner may have had different pairs of placements, why is it likely you were both correct?

Part II: Regional Terms

To accurately describe body parts and position, scientists have agreed on a standard body orientation, called the anatomical position. In anatomical position, the body is standing up straight with the arms hanging at the sides and palms facing forward.

5.  Use the internet to define each of the following regional terms. Then, label each term on the skeletal images below. Also, with a friend, work together to find each region on your Maniken and point it out. (No labeling is necessary in this activity.)

Regional Term / Definition
Abdominal / Stomach area
Antecubital / In the fold of the inside of the arm
Axillary / Armpit area
Brachial / Arm area
Buccal / Cheek area
Calcaneal / Heel of foot
Carpal / Wrist area
Cephalic / Head area
Cervical / Throat area
Coxal / Hip area
Digital / Finger and Toe area
Femoral / Thigh area
Gluteal / Buttock area
Inguinal / Groin area
Lumbar / Lateral to the umbilical region
Nasal / Nose area
Occipital / Posterior side of the head
Olecranal / Posterior surface of the elbow
Oral / Mouth area
Orbital / Eye area
Patellar / Anterior knee area
Pelvic / Inferior to the abdominal cavity
Popliteal / Posterior knee area
Sacral / Posterior landmark area between hips
Scapular / Upper back, scapula area
Sternal / Breastbone area
Tarsal / Along the front of the foot around the ankle
Thoracic / Superior area of ventral body cavity; separated by diaphragm
Umbilical / Belly Button area
Vertebral / Spine area

Label regional terms on the following skeletons posterior and anterior skeletons. You may want to use colored pencils or highlighters.

6.  If you haven’t already remove all tape flags from the Maniken®.

Conclusion Questions

1.  What are the benefits of using universal terms and anatomical position to refer to locations on the human body? How do they help identify all humans?

Everyone in the medical field will be able to understand the terms and be able to locate specific regions of the body quickly.

2.  What does it mean when a doctor says he/she is about to dissect the distal end of the popliteal artery?

The artery on the back of the knee (anterior (or dorsal)) side of the body will be dissected at the point furthest from attachment to the body.

3.  Your friend assures you that “anterior” and “posterior” can always be used interchangeably with “ventral” and “dorsal”. Politely explain to him/her that this statement is not always true. (HINT: Think about what these terms mean for four-legged animals.)

In humans the words posterior and dorsal are interchangeable as well as anterior and ventral. However, in 4-legged creatures, such as dogs, dorsal means back, ventral means belly, posterior means head region and anterior means tail region.