Preparation for Anatomy, Physiology and Biomechanics
Welcome to the module! – This module aims to build upon the skills from your first degree experience to develop the attributes and skills required of you to underpin the neuromusculoskeletal components of physiotherapy clinical practice.
In order to achieve this, it is important for you to prepare for the teaching sessions to allow this time to be used effectively.
You have all come to this course from different backgrounds and will carry with you different areas of knowledge and expertise. As M-level learners you need to recognise, and rectify, areas where your knowledge may need supplementing. Please seek tutorial assistance to help with this when required.
The preparation material, such as that laid out below, represents a minimal requirement to allow you to gain the most from the taught sessions. If you feel confident about the concepts referred to, you should work on increasing the depth and breadth of your knowledge.
The language of functional anatomy
Functional anatomy and biomechanics has its own language and terminology. Although initially daunting, familiarity with these terms is necessary for you to be an effective clinician and to be able to communicate with other members of the multidisciplinary team. You will need this information for all of your modules.
You can expand on the information below from any basic anatomy / physiology text.
Anatomical position.
To describe the position and movement of body parts, we need to have a starting point. The standardised position is the ‘anatomical position’.
Make your own notes on the anatomical position and ensue that you can adopt this position in standing.
Planes of the body.
In order to describe movement, the body is dived by imaginary lines or planes.
Complete the following table; add diagrams to your notes as they will help you understand these.
Plane / DefinitionFrontal/ Coronal
Sagittal
Median
Transverse/ horizontal
Directional Terms
Some commonly used directional terms are listed in the table below.
Please complete the table, providing a definition of each term and appropriate anatomical example e.g. the knee is distal to the hip.
Term / Definition / ExampleSuperior (Cranial, cephalad)
Inferior (Caudal)
Anterior (Ventral)
Posterior (Dorsal)
Medial
Lateral
Proximal
Distal
Movement.
The most common descriptions of body movements are listed below.
Write a definition of each movement. Describe the plane that this movement occurs in (make sure you can demonstrate examples of each movement).
Movement / Description / PlaneFlexion / Extension
Medial (internal) Rotation/
Lateral (external) Rotation
Abduction / Adduction
Supination / Pronation
Plantarflexion / Doriflexion
Inversion / eversion
Circumduction
Types of joint
There are 3 classifications of joints within the human body.
For each named joint classification list the main features and give an example for each.
Joint classification / Main features / ExampleSynovial joints
Fibrous Joints
Cartilaginous joints
Synovial joints are the most commonly found joints in the human body. These are the joints that you will work with most as a physiotherapist so it is important that you have a good knowledge of how they are constructed. Understanding their structure will give a clue to their function and also the problems that may arise when that function is lost or compromised.
When we assess a joint we are looking at range of movement restrictions and any change in joint structure or shape due to degenerative changes or swelling. To understand how and why these changes occur and their functional consequences you need to have a clear understanding of the role of the fibrous capsule the articular (hyaline) cartilage.
Complete the following table -You may wish to look at a physiology textto add to the information from an anatomy text book.
Structure / FunctionJoint (articular, fibrous) capsule
Articular (hyaline) cartilage
Synovial fluid
Synovial membrane
As you will already know different parts of your body move in different ways for example think of the movement your shoulder can do compared to your knee. Both are synovial joints but they are designed differently to permit different function.
The table below lists the different types of synovial joints found in the body. For each type give a brief description of the joint surface shape and an example of where they are found in the body.
Type of synovial joint / Shape of the articular surfaces / Examples in the bodyPlane joint
Ellipsoid / condyloid
Pivot joint
Hinge joint
Saddle (sellar) joint
Ball and socket joint