Terminologia Anatomica (commonly abbreviated TA) is the international standard for human anatomical terminology. It is developed by the Federative International Programme on Anatomical Terminology, a program of the International Federation of Associations of Anatomists (IFAA).
The sixth edition of the previous standard, Nomina Anatomica, was released in 1989. The first edition of Terminologia Anatomica, superseding Nomina Anatomica, was developed by the Federative Committee on Anatomical Terminology (FCAT) and the International Federation of Associations of Anatomists (IFAA) and released in 1998.[1] In April 2011, this edition was published online by the Federative International Programme on Anatomical Terminologies (FIPAT), the successor of FCAT. The first edition contained 7635 Latin items.[2]
The second edition was released online by FIPAT in 2019 and approved and adopted by the IFAA General Assembly in 2020. The latest errata is dated August 2021.[3] It contains a total of 7112 numbered terms (1-7113 skipping 2590), with some terms repeated.[4]
A 2014 survey of the American Association of Clinical Anatomists found that the TA preferred term had the highest frequency of usage in only 53% of the 25 anatomical terms surveyed, and was highest or second-highest for 92% of terms. 75% of respondents were unfamiliar with FIPAT and TA.[5]
In a panel at the 2022 International Federation of Associations of Anatomists Congress, one author stated "the Terminologia Anatomica generally receives no attention in medical terminology courses", but stressed its importance.[6] The TA is not well established in other languages, such as French.[7] The English equivalent names are often inconsistent if viewed as translations of the accompanying Latin phrases.[8]
The Terminologia Anatomica specifically excludes eponyms, as they were determined to "give absolutely no anatomical information about the named structure, and vary considerably between countries and cultures".[9] In a 2023 study of eight gynecologic eponyms, the TA term was preferred in two cases, and showed a significant trend towards TA adoption in three others, leaving three non-TA terms likely to remain in common use.[10]
Terminologia Anatomica is divided into 16 chapters grouped into five parts. The official terms are in Latin. Although equivalent English-language terms are provided, only the official Latin terms are used as the basis for creating lists of equivalent terms in other languages.
TA1998:
TA2 ID (P7173) (see uses)TA2:
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Human systems and organs
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| Musculoskeletal system |
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| Circulatory system |
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| Nervous system |
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| Integumentary system |
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| Haematopoietic and immune systems |
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| Respiratory system |
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| Digestive system |
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| Urinary system |
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| Reproductive system |
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| Endocrine system |
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| Topographical codes |
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| Diagnostic codes |
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| Procedural codes |
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| Pharmaceutical codes |
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| Outcomes codes |
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