The Illuminated Body: Representation in Medicine and Culture

Modern Allopathic Medicine

The Allopathic Systems
The human body is made up of ten distinct systems, according to allopathic medicine. Parts of each system can be seen in this chart, except for the nervous and reproductive systems. The nervous system, which includes the brain, regulates and coordinates all of the body's activities. Every movement we make, whether involuntary or deliberate, every sensation and even our dreams depend on the nervous system. The reproductive system includes the external sex organs and all related inner structures that are concerned with the production of offspring.

Skeletal System
The skeleton is the framework that supports the body and protects the internal organs. Adult human beings have over 200 bones.

Muscular System
Muscles perform a variety of functions within the body. Some move the large limbs such as arms and legs, while others are found in internal organs, such as the colon (6b #34-40) and the heart (6b #15-16).

Digestive System
This system comprises all the organs involved in consuming food and converting its useful elements into chemical substances the body can use. The esophagus (6d #20) carries food to the stomach (6b #27) where it is ground up and mixed with digestive juices.

Respiratory System
Respiration, or breathing, brings oxygen to the lungs where it is dispersed to the blood cells. A waste product, carbon dioxide, is carried to the lungs (6b #19-20) by blood cells. Carbon dioxide is expelled from the lungs with each exhalation.

Circulatory System
The heart (6b #15-16) pumps the blood, and the vessels carry it to the body tissues. The arteries (6b #4) bring oxygen- and nutrient-rich blood to the cells, and the veins (6b #5) carry away the cells' waste materials.

Urinary System
The kidneys (6c #34-35) and bladder (6c #57) are part of the system that removes the body's waste products and excess water.

Endocrine System
The endocrine glands-the thyroid (6a #2) and the pituitary-help to regulate growth, reproduction and utilization of food. The endocrine glands produce hormones, or chemical messengers, that are carried to all parts of the body.

Integumentary System
The word integument means skin. The skin is considered by some to be a separate body system. It includes the skin, hair, nails, and the sweat and oil glands.

Bone Terminology
Some anatomy terms are based on a resemblance of the structure to some familiar object. Many of these terms are no longer in everyday use, but in ancient Greece and Rome, where they originated, they were common words. Here are just a few examples, taken from the skeletal system. Can you see why each bone was named after the object next to it?

Artifacts courtesy of the Department of Anatomy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa

The name for the acetabulum, the cup-shaped part of the hip joint, comes from the word "acetum" meaning vinegar because it was thought to resemble a vinegar cruet.

The word "clavicle" (collarbone) comes from the word "clavis," or "key" because of the resemblance in shape.

The four clinoid processes, found inside the skull, were thought to suggest the posts of a four-poster bed. The word "clinic" also comes from this word and originally meant bedside medicine.

A phalanx is a line or array of soldiers. It is also used as a term for the bones of the fingers and toes.

A radius is a spoke in a wheel, and one of the bones in the arm.

Scapula (the shoulder blade) comes from the Greek word meaning "to dig" because it resembles the blade of a shovel.

The coracoid process is part of the shoulder blade and it is named after a crow's beak.

The word "skull" means bowl.

The sternum, or breastbone, is made up of the gladiolus, meaning sword and the manubrium, meaning handle.

Tibia means flute or pipe and is the large bone between the knee and ankle.

Fibula means clasp or pin and resembles the clasp used to fasten Roman clothing. The fibula is the small bone found in the lower part of the leg.