Body Planes and
Cavities
Principles of Health Science
Standard Anatomical
Position
Body Planes
• Imaginary lines drawn through body to separate the
body into section.
• Directional terms create planes
• Three main body planes: Transverse, Midsagittal
(median), frontal (coronal) plane
Transverse Plane
• Horizontal plane
• Divides the body into a top half and bottom half
o Directional terms associated with transverse:
• Superior – body parts above
• Inferior – body parts below
Midsagittal (median)
Plane
• Divides the body into a right and left side
o Directional terms associated with midsagittal:
• Medial – body parts close to midline
• Lateral – body parts away from the midline
Frontal or Coronal Plane
• Divides the body into front section and back
section
o Directional terms associated with frontal:
• Ventral or Anterior – body parts in front of plane or in front of the body
• Dorsal or Posterior – body parts in back of plane or in back of body
Directional Terms
Directional Terms
• Extremities in relation to trunk (point of reference)
o Proximal – body part closest to point of reference
o Distal – body part farther or most distant from the point of reference
• Example: Relationship between wrist, elbow and shoulder, with
shoulder being the point of reference.
o Wrist is distal to elbow
o Elbow is proximal to shoulder
Body Cavities
• Spaces within body that contain vital organs
• Two main body cavities: Dorsal Cavity and Ventral
Cavity
Dorsal Cavity
• One long, continuous cavity located on back of
body
• Divided into two sections:
o Cranial Cavity – contains the brain
o Spinal Cavity – contains the spinal cord
Ventral Cavity
• Larger than dorsal cavity,
separated into two cavities
by the diaphragm.
o Thoracic Cavity: located in the chest
and contains heart, lungs and large
blood vessels
o Abdominal Cavity: divided into
upper and lower part
• Upper Abdominal Cavity –
contains stomach, small
intestine, most of large intestine,
liver, gallbladder, pancreas and
spleen
Ventral Cavity, cont.
- Lower Abdominal Cavity or pelvic cavity – contains urinary
bladder, reproductive organs, and last part of the intestines
Additional Cavities
• Three small cavities
o Orbital cavity: contains eyes
o Nasal cavity: contains nose structures
o Buccal cavity: contains mouth