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Anatomical position refers to the point of reference when studying anatomy. The international medical community agrees upon a specific standard anatomical position. The (living) human body should be standing upright with its eyes facing straight ahead, the lower limbs slightly apart, feet facing forward and flat on the ground, and arms on the side with the hands facing the observer. This position is always in reference to the body being observed, regardless of the fact that the body being observed is a cadaver or a living human. (Although in the case of the cadavers, the cadaver may be lying on a flat surface instead of standing upright.) This means that the right side of the body being observed is at the left side of the observer.
With this, why should people study anatomical positions?
With this, why should people study anatomical positions?
Society regards medical professionals with valuable treatment. They are often expected to do well in their job and commit less to zero mistakes as possible. However, that it not always the case. The May 2014 issue of the Spine journal reported that of the 173 respondents of the North American Spine Society (NASS) in an 8-question anonymous survey, 68% admitted to performing procedures on the wrong site (side or level) of the spine. These erroneous surgeries are dubbed as “wrong-site surgeries,” wherein surgeons operate on the wrong side (such as removing the supposedly cancerous portion of the vulva on the right side when in fact, the cancer-infected part is one the left). Fortunately, due to the system-based approach of medical professionals in the form of the Universal Protocol on Wrong-Site Spine Surgery, these numbers sank after years of implementation and constant regulation (DeVine, 2020).
These statistics demonstrate the importance of paying attention to the right positions of the human body. These statistics show that regardless of how much a professional thinks he knows, there is still a possibility of making errors on supposedly simple matters. Thus, it is significant to have a solid foundation on the anatomical positions to avoid performing erroneous procedures on patients.
The figure on the left shows the basic anatomical positions.
Photo credits and reference material:
DeVine, J. G., Chutkan, N., Gloystein, D., & Jackson, K. (2020). An Update on Wrong-Site Spine Surgery. Global Spine Journal, 10(1_suppl), 41S-44S. https://doi.org/10.1177/2192568219846911
North American Spine Society. (2014). SIGN, MARK & X-RAY Prevention of Wrong-Site Spinal Surgery. The Spine Journal. Published. https://www.spine.org/Portals/0/assets/downloads/ResearchClinicalCare/SMAX2014Revision.pdf
Seikel, J. A., Douglas, D. W., & Drumright, D. G. (2010). Anatomy & Physiology for Speech, Language, and Hearing 4th edition (4th Edition). CENGAGE Learning.
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