Regional Trunk and Head Anatomy

This unit examines the anatomy, surface landmarks, and clinical assessment techniques for the thorax, abdomen, pelvis/perineum, and head. Students integrate structural relationships with hands-on skills (inspection, palpation, percussion, auscultation) to recognize normal and common abnormal findings and prepare for applied clinical procedures and differential diagnosis in subsequent units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze the bony and soft-tissue structures of the thoracic cage and coverings by identifying surface landmarks, rib levels, and pleural relationships and explaining implications for common procedures and assessments
• Demonstrate systematic thoracic organ assessment by performing inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation of the lungs and heart and interpreting common abnormal findings
• Apply knowledge of the abdominal wall and visceral anatomy to accurately localize organs using quadrants/regions, perform focused abdominal examination maneuvers (e.g., rebound, guarding, Murphy sign), and correlate findings with likely pathologies
• Evaluate the anatomy and clinical assessment of the pelvis/perineum and head by describing key landmarks and neurovascular relationships and conducting focused screening exams (pelvic surface landmarks, basic cranial nerve/head and neck exam) to inform referral and care planning