The biomedical engineer works with the medical doctors, the nurses,the manufacturers and so on. In order to design new device for healthcare, basical understanding human body is prior. In order to find out the requirement of the special medical devices, therapy and so on, when we read the patents,journals, articles and so on and communicate with medical field people, it would be very helpful. In this chapter, fundamental anatomical terms and medical glossary would be introduced.
The body is composed of the head, trunk and limbs.
The trunk consists of the neck, thorax(chest) and abdomen (belly). The lowest part of the trunk is the perineum. The central axis of the trunk is the vertebral column, and the upper part of it(cervical part) supports the head.
The main parts of the upper limb are the arm, forearm and hand. Arm in anatomical form means the part between the shoulder and elbow. But, generally the arm means from the shoulder to before the hand.
The main parts of the lower limb are the thigh, leg and foot. Here also leg in anatomical term point out the part from knee to foot.But, generally the leg means from thigh to before the foot.
For the positions of structure in human anatomy, the whole body should stand upright with the feet together and the head and eyes looking to the front with the arms straight by the side and the palms of the hands facing forwards.
The ‘Median plane’ is an virtual vertical longitudinal line through the middle of the body from front to back, dividing the body into right and left halves.
The ‘Coronal planes’ are imaginary planes at right angles to the median plane.
The 'Transverse plane' divides the body into head and tail portions.
Apathy (lack of feeling); apnea (without breath); aphasia (without speech)
Ab
Away from
Abductor (leading away from); aboral (away from mouth)
Ad
To, toward, near to
Adductor (leading toward); adhesion (sticking to); adnexia (structures joined to); adrenal (near the kidney)
Ambi,Amphi,Ampho
Both
Ambidextrous (ability to use hands equally); ambilaterally (both sides), Amphibious (living on both land and water), Amphogenic (producing offspring of both sexes)
Ana
Up, back, again, excessive
Anatomy (a cutting up); anagenesis (reproduction of tissue)
Ductal (suffix added to make adjective); oviduct (egguterine tube or fallopian tube); periductal (per means around); abduct (prefix meaning lead away from)
Phlebotomy (incision of vein); arthrotomy (joint); appendectomy (ectomy, meaning cut out excision of appendix); oophorectomy (excision of ovary); ileocecostomy (ostomy, meaning creation of an artificial opening, and os, pertaining to opening or mouth thus, an anastomosis of ileum and cecum)
Tropho
Nourish
Hypertrophy (enlargement or overnourishment); atrophy (undernourishment)
Volv
Turn
Volvulus (twisting of an organ, intestinal obstruction with twisting of bowel, or twisting of the esophagus)
The smallest of a body's blood vessels system connecting arterioles with venules and forming or network throughout.
Cardiac
Having to do with the heart.
Cardiology
A medical special area dealing with disorders of the heart be it human or animal.
Cardiovascular
Relating to the circulatory system, which comprises the heart and blood vessels and carries nutrients and oxygen to the tissues of the body and removes carbon dioxide and other wastes from them.
Catheter
a thin tube device extruded from medical grade materials serving a broad range of functions.
Cell
The basic structural, functional and biological unit of all known living organisms.
Cerebellum
A region of the brain that plays an important role in motor control. It may also be involved in some cognitive functions
Collagen
The major structural protein of the various connective tissues in animals.
Computerised Axial tomography (CAT)
Commonly known by its abbreviated name, CAT scan or CT scan. An x-ray procedure which combines many x-ray images with the aid of a computer to generate cross-sectional views
Cortex
The outermost layered structure of neural tissue of the cerebrum (brain),
A common treatment for life-threatening cardiac dysrhythmias, ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia. Defibrillation is composed of delivering a therapeutic dose of electrical energy to the heart with a device called a defibrillator.
Diastole
The period of time when the heart refills with blood after systole (contraction).
Diastolic
Referring to the time when the heart is in a period of relaxation and expansion (dilatation).
Dicrotic
Relating or being to the second part of the arterial pulse occurring during diastole of the heart or of an arterial pressure recording made during the same period.
The science of rheology of the blood, the relation of pressure,flow volume and resistance to blood vessels.
Heparin
A highly sulfated glycosaminoglycan which is used to prevent blood clots from forming in people who have certain medical conditions or who are undergoing certain medical procedures
Hormone
Our body's chemical messengers that is produced in all multicellular organisms by glands, and transported by the circulatory system to a distant target organ to control its physiology and behavior.
Hypoxia
A condition in which the body or a region of the body is deprived of adequate oxygen supply.
also referred to as the posterior vena cava. A vein that carries blood from the lower body to the heart.
In-vivo
Latin for "within the living".Often employed over in vitro because it is better suited for observing the overall effects of an experiment on a living subject.
Ischemic
also spelled as ischaemia or ischæmia.Supply to tissues, causing a shortage of oxygen and glucose needed for cellular metabolism (to keep tissue alive).
Isometric
Comes from the Greek for "having equal measurement".
Isotonic
Having equal tension. Having the same concentration of solutes as the blood. Physiology Of or involving muscular contraction in which the muscle remains under relatively constant tension while its length changes.
A very thin layer of tissue that covers a 'surface.
Metabolism
All the chemical processes inside your body. It depends on your age, gender, muscle-to-fat ratio, the food you eat and physical activity. Your hormones and nervous system control your body’s metabolism.
Mitral valve
One of the heart's four valves, opens to allow blood to flow from the left atrium into the left ventricle.
Motor
A muscle, nerve or centre that effects or producesmovement.
Myelin
An insulating layer, or sheath, that forms around nerves, including those in the brain and spinal cord. It is made up of protein and fatty substances.
Myocardium
The middle and thickest layer of the heart wall, composed of cardiac muscle.
Myograph
Any device used to measure the force produced by a muscle when under contraction.
The death of living cells or tissues. It occurs when there is not enough blood flowing to the tissue, whether from injury, radiation, or chemicals.
Nerve
Enclosed bundles of the long fibers or axons.The peripheral nervous system consists mainly of nerves.
Neuron
A neuron receives electrical input signals from sensory cells (called sensory neurons) and from other neurons and sends electrical output signals to muscle neurons (called motoneurons or motor neurons) and to other neurons.
A semilunar valve between the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery; prevents blood from flowing from the artery back into the heart
Sinoatrial
Involving, or being the sinus node. Sinoatrial node indicates the heart's natural pacemaker, one of the major elements in the cardiac conduction system, the system that controls the heart rate.
Sphygmomanometer
An apparatus for measuring blood pressure, composed of an inflatable cuff to restrict blood flow, and a mercury or mechanical manometer to measure the pressure.
Spirometer
A device for measuring the volume of air inspired and expired by the lungs.
Spleen
An organ located just below your rib cage on your left side. It acts primarily as a blood filter.
Stenusis
An abnormal narrowing in a blood vessel or other tubular organ or structure.
Stroke volume
The amount of blood pumped out of the heart (left ventricle - to the body) during each contraction measured in mL/beat (millilitres per beat). It is calculated through measurements of ventricle volumes from an echocardiogram and subtracting the volume of the blood in the ventricle at the end of a beat (called end-systolic volume) from the volume of blood just prior to the beat (called end-diastolic volume). The stroke volume is not all the blood contained in the left ventricle; normally, only about two-thirds of the blood in the ventricle is expelled with each beat.
Superior vena cava
A large vein in the body that carries deoxygenated blood to the right atrium of the heart. It is also commonly referred to as the precava.
Systemic
Of or relating to an entire system. medical : Of, relating to, or affecting the entire body.
Systole
The time period when the heart is contracting. The period specifically during which the left ventricle of the heart contracts.
Histology is the study of the microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues. All organs of the body are formed of tissues.
A tissue is a collection of similar type cells associated with some intercellular matrix (ground substance) controlled by
some laws of growth and development. These cells perform the same functions. Tissues are usually divided into four categories:muscle tissue, nervous tissue, connective tissue, and epithelial tissue.
Muscle tissue is composed of "excitable" cells which can contract. Muscle tissue include a lot of microfilaments composed of actin and myosin, which are contractile proteins. There are three major types of muscle tissue:
Skeletal Muscle:It is attached to bones by tendons and associated with the body's voluntary movements. Skeletal muscle is striated muscle. Unlike cardiac muscle, the cells are not branched.
Visceral (Smooth) Muscle:It is found in many parts of the body such as the arteries, the bladder, the digestive tract and so on. Visceral muscle is also called smooth muscle as it doesn't have cross striations. Visceral muscle contracts slower than skeletal muscle, but the contraction can be continued for a longer period.
Cardiac muscle:It is so named because it is found in the heart. Cells are joined to one another by intercalated discs which allow the synchronization of the heart beat. Cardiac muscle is branched, striated muscle.
Nervous tissue is specialized to sense stimuli and transmit signals to and from different parts of an organism. The nervous system is split into two parts. One is the central nervous system which includes the brain and spinal cord while the peripheral nervous system contains the cranial and spinal nervous and provides the communication between the CNS and the rest of the body.
Two main cell types are neurons and neuroglia. The neurons are the basic structural units of the nervous system. The neuroglia assist the propagation of the nerve impulse and provide nutrients to the neuron. Neurons transmit electricity through their plasma membrane and lose their ability to split once they commit to their roles (after birth). They last a life time and store memory. However, if they are destroyed they cannot be replaced. However with that said, you cannot avoid other parts of the brain to take over functions. Neurons also needs lots of oxygen and glucose and will die within 5 minutes without oxygen.
Nervous tissue is composed of various types of nerve cells, all of which having an axon, the long stem-like part of the cell that sends action potential signals to the next cell.
Nervous tissue is discussed more in Chapter 3.
Connective tissue (CT) supports, connects, or separates various tissues and organs of the body. It is one of the four major type tissues—the others of which are epithelial, muscle, and nervous tissues. Connective tissue can be found everywhere in the body except the central nervous system.
It is one of the four major types tissues. It is related to secretion, selective absorption, protection, transcellular transport and detection of sensation. In Greek ἐπί (epi) means "on" or "upon", and θηλή (thēlē) means "nipple".
Summary showing different epithelial cells/tissues and their characteristics.
