Which term describes away from the midline of the body?

Which term describes away from the midline of the body?

• A. Lateral
• B. Intermediate
• C. Proximal
• D. Distal

Answer: (A)

Lateral describes being toward the side of the body, away from the midline. The midline is an imaginary vertical line that splits the body into left and right halves, so anything farther from that line is considered lateral. For example, the ears are lateral to the nose, or the arms are lateral to the chest. By comparison, proximal and distal relate to closeness to or distance from a point of attachment along a limb, and intermediate means between two points, so they don’t describe being away from the midline. Medial would be the opposite, toward the midline.

Lateral describes being toward the side of the body, away from the midline. The midline is an imaginary vertical line that splits the body into left and right halves, so anything farther from that line is considered lateral. For example, the ears are lateral to the nose, or the arms are lateral to the chest. By comparison, proximal and distal relate to closeness to or distance from a point of attachment along a limb, and intermediate means between two points, so they don’t describe being away from the midline. Medial would be the opposite, toward the midline.