Anatomy Regional Terms

Major Regions of the Body

• Axial Region

  • Covers head, neck, and trunk
  • Mnemonic: Ax = acts; think of cutting down a trunk with an ax.

• Appendicular Region

  • Includes upper and lower limbs (appendages that attach to the body)

Axial Region Areas

• Cephalic

  • Entire head region
  • Mnemonic: Starts with C and ends with lick (lick the head).

• Cranial

  • Refers to the skull
  • Mnemonic: Rhymes with brain; houses the brain.

• Frontal

  • Forehead area
  • Mnemonic: Front = four; forehead.

• Ocular

  • Region of the eyes
  • Mnemonic: Binoculars used for sight.

• Otic

  • Refers to the ear region
  • Mnemonic: Otoscope used by doctors for ear inspection.

• Nasal

  • Region of the nose
  • Mnemonic: Nasal spray is used for the nose.

• Buccal

  • Area of the cheeks
  • Mnemonic: Medication administered via buccal route (inside of the cheek).

• Oral

  • Referring to the mouth
  • Mnemonic: Medication taken orally means by mouth.

• Mental

  • Refers to the chin
  • Mnemonic: Men often have a prominent chin.

• Occipital

  • Back/base of the skull
  • Related to occipital lobe and bone.

Neck Region

• Cervical
  • Refers to the neck
  • Cervical vertebrae present here.

Trunk Region

• Thoracic

  • Area between neck and abdomen
  • Corresponds to thorax in insects.

• Axillary

  • Armpit region
  • Mnemonic: Ax deodorant for axillary region.

• Mammary

  • Breast region (mammary glands).

• Sternal

  • Named after the sternum bone (looks like a necktie).

• Abdominal

  • Area of the abdomen (abs).
  • Can be divided into four quadrants or nine regions.

• Umbilical

  • Area of the navel (belly button).

• Pelvic

  • Region between hip bones.

• Inguinal

  • Area where inguinal hernias can occur.

• Pubic

  • Refers to external genitalia.

• Perineal

  • Area between genitalia and anus (pericare).

Posterior Trunk Regions

• Dorsal

  • Area of the back (dorsal fin in dolphins).

• Vertebral

  • Area along the spine (vertebrae).

• Lumbar

  • Lower back region.
  • Mnemonic: Lumbar support in chairs for lower back pain.

• Sacral

  • Area where the sacrum bone is located.

• Gluteal

  • Area of the buttocks (glutes).

Appendicular Region Areas

Upper Limb

• Acromial

  • Bony part of the shoulder
  • Mnemonic: Acrobats stand on this.

• Brachial

  • Refers to the arm.
  • Muscles: biceps brachii, triceps brachii.

• Antecubital

  • Front of the elbow
  • Nurses often refer to it as AC.

• Olecranal

  • Back of the elbow (olecranon).
  • Mnemonic: Elbow bump during the pandemic.

• Antibrachial

  • Refers to the forearm (not the arm! The arm is from shoulder to elbow).

• Carpal

  • Wrist area
  • Mnemonic: Carpals help drive a car.

• Manual

  • Entire hand region.

• Meta

  • Beyond the carpals (metacarpals are in the hand).

• Palmar

  • Refers to the palm of the hand.

• Pollux

  • Region of the thumb
  • Mnemonic: Pollux = thumbs up.

• Digital

  • Refers to fingers.

Lower Limb

• Coxal

  • Refers to the hip region.
  • Mnemonic: Cowboy cocks his gun at the coxal region.

• Femoral

  • Whole thigh region (femur bone).

• Patellar

  • Front of the knee (kneecap).

• Popliteal

  • Back of the knee.

• Cural

  • Front area of the leg (knee to ankle).
  • Mnemonic: Cricket pads cover the curl region.

• Sural

  • Area of the calf muscle.

• Pedal

  • Refers to the foot.
  • Mnemonic: Use your feet to pedal a bike.

• Calcaneal

  • Region of the heel.
  • Mnemonic: Callus on the heel.

• Tarsal

  • Ankle region.
  • Note the difference from carpal region.

• Metatarsal

  • Area beyond tarsals (metatarsals in the foot).

• Hallux

  • Region of the big toe.
  • Mnemonic: Use your hallux to walk down the hall.

• Digital

  • Refers to toes.

• Plantar

  • Region of the sole of the foot.

Conclusion

• Important to connect anatomical terms to their functions or mnemonic devices for better understanding and memory retention.
• Quiz and additional resources available in the description.