Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology

Introduction

1. Anatomy—the study of structure.


2. Physiology—the study of function.


3. Pathophysiology—the study of disorders of func-
   tioning.

Levels of Organization

1. Chemical—inorganic and organic chemicals make
   up all matter, both living and non-living.


2. Cells—the smallest living units of the body.

18 Organization and General Plan of the Body

STUDY OUTLINE

BOX1–2 VISUALIZING THE INTERIOR OF THE BODY

A B C

Box Figure 1–A Imaging techniques. (A) CT scan of eye in lateral view showing a tumor (arrow)

below the optic nerve. (B) MRI of midsagittal section of head (compare with Figs. 8–6 and 15–1).

(C) PET scan of brain in transverse section (frontal lobes at top) showing glucose metabolism. (From

Mazziotta, JC, and Gilman, S: Clinical Brain Imaging: Principles and Applications. FA Davis,

Philadelphia, 1992, pp 27 and 298, with permission.)

In the past, the need for exploratory surgery

brought with it hospitalization, risk of infection, and

discomfort and pain for the patient. Today, how-

ever, several technologies and the extensive use of

computers permit us to see the interior of the body

without surgery.

Computed tomography(CT)scanninguses a

narrowly focused x-ray beam that circles rapidly

around the body. A detector then measures how

much radiation passes through different tissues,

and a computer constructs an image of a thin

slice through the body. Several images may be

made at different levels—each takes only a few

seconds—to provide a more complete picture of

an organ or part of the body. The images are

much more detailed than are those produced by

conventional x-rays.

Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) is another

diagnostic tool that is especially useful for visual-

izing soft tissues, including the brain and spinal

cord. Recent refinements have produced images

of individual nerve bundles, which had not been

possible using any other technique. The patient

is placed inside a strong magnetic field, and the

tissues are pulsed with radio waves. Because

each tissue has different proportions of various

atoms, which resonate or respond differently,

each tissue emits a characteristic signal. A com-

puter then translates these signals into an image;

the entire procedure takes 30 to 45 minutes.

Positron emission tomography(PET) scanning

creates images that depict the rates of physio-

logical processes such as blood flow, oxygen

usage, or glucose metabolism. The comparative

rates are depicted by colors: Red represents the

highest rate, followed by yellow, then green, and

finally blue representing the lowest rate.

One drawback of these technologies is their cost;

they are expensive. However, the benefits to

patients are great: Highly detailed images of the

body are obtained without the risks of surgery and

with virtually no discomfort in the procedures them-

selves.