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Proximal

Anatomical landmarks, back view
Anatomical landmarks, back view 		Anatomical landmarks, front view
Anatomical landmarks, front view

Definition

Proximal means nearer to the center (trunk of the body) or to the point of attachment to the body. If another reference point is given, such as the heart, the proximal point of another organ or extremity is the point closest to the heart -- central rather than peripheral.

Information

Review Date: 1/22/2007
Reviewd By: Benjamin W. Van Voorhees, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.