The standard anatomical position, or standard anatomical model, is the scientifically agreed upon reference position for
anatomical location terms. Standard anatomical positions are used to standardise the position of
appendages
An appendage (or outgrowth) is an external body part, or natural prolongation, that protrudes from an organism's body.
In arthropods, an appendage refers to any of the homologous body parts that may extend from a body segment, including anten ...
of animals with respect to the main body of the organism. In medical disciplines, all references to a location on or in the body are made based upon the standard anatomical position.
A straight position is assumed when describing a
proximo-
distal
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
axis (towards or away from a point of attachment). This helps avoid confusion in terminology when referring to the same organism in different postures. For example, if the elbow is flexed, the hand remains distal to the shoulder even if it approaches the shoulder.
Human anatomy
In standard anatomical position, the human body is standing erect and at rest. Unlike the situation in other vertebrates, the limbs are placed in positions reminiscent of the
supine position imposed on
cadaver
A cadaver or corpse is a dead human body that is used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue to repair a defect in a living human being. Stud ...
s during autopsy. Therefore, the body has its feet together (or slightly separated), and its arms are rotated outward so that the
palms are forward, and the
thumb
The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thum ...
s are pointed away from the body (forearms supine). As well, the arms are usually moved slightly out from the body, so that the hands do not touch the sides.
[Marieb, E.N. Human Anatomy and Physiology pub: Benjamin/Cummings, ][Tortora, G.J. and Derrickson, B. Principles of Anatomy and Physiology. Wiley 2006 ] The positions of the limbs (and the arms in particular) have important implications for directional terms in those appendages. The
penis in the anatomical position is described in its
erect position and therefore lies against the abdomen, hence the
dorsal
Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to:
* Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism
* Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage
* Dorsal co ...
surface of the penis is actually
anterior
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
when the penis is flaccid.
Skull
In humans, the anatomical position of the
skull has been agreed by international convention to be the
Frankfurt plane
The standard anatomical position, or standard anatomical model, is the scientifically agreed upon reference position for anatomical location terms. Standard anatomical positions are used to standardise the position of appendages of animals with ...
or Frankfort plane, a position in which the lower margins of the
orbits, the orbitales, and the upper margins of the
ear canals, the poria, all lie in the same horizontal plane. This is a good approximation to the position in which the skull would be if the subject were standing upright and facing forward normally.
History
Frankfurt plane
The Frankfurt plane was established at the World Congress on
Anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...
in
Frankfurt am Main,
Germany in 1884, and decreed as the anatomical position of the
human skull. It was decided that a plane passing through the inferior margin of the left
orbit (the point called the left orbitale) and the upper margin of each ear canal or external auditory meatus, a point called the
porion ''For people with the surname, see Porion (surname).''
The porion is the point on the human skull located at the upper margin of each ear canal (external auditory meatus, external acoustic meatus). It lies on the superior margin of the tragus. I ...
, was most nearly parallel to the surface of the
earth at the position the head is normally carried in the living subject. The alternate spelling Frankfort plane is also widely used, and found in several medical dictionaries, although ''Frankfurt'' is the modern standard spelling of the city it is named for. Another name for the plane is the auriculo-orbital plane.
Note that in the normal subject, both orbitales and both porions lie in a single plane. However, due to pathology, this is not always the case. The formal definition specifies only the three points listed above, sufficient to describe a plane in three-dimensional space.
For purposes of comparison of human skulls with those of some other species, notably
hominids
The Hominidae (), whose members are known as the great apes or hominids (), are a taxonomic family of primates that includes eight extant species in four genera: '' Pongo'' (the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutan); ''Gorilla'' (the eas ...
and
primates, the skulls may be studied in the Frankfurt plane; nonetheless, the Frankfurt plane is not considered to be the anatomical position for most non-primate species.
The Frankfurt plane may also be used as a reference point in related fields. For example, in
prosthodontics, the Frankfurt-Mandibular plane Angle (FMA) is the angle formed at the intersection of the Frankfurt plane with the
mandibular plane
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movable bone ...
.
Other animals
Canines
For dogs, the standard anatomical position is having the abdomen ventral by each paw standing on the supporting surface.
[Evans, H.E., & Miller, M. E. Miller's anatomy of the dog, ]
References
{{reflist
See also
*
Reid's base line
Reid's base line is used for an unambiguous definition of the orientation of the human skull in conventional radiography, computer tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies. It is defined as a line drawn from the inferior marg ...
*
Anatomical terms of location
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pro ...
Anatomical terminology