Mediaalne

Mediaalne is an anatomical term used in Estonian-language texts to describe a position toward the midline of the body or a body part. It corresponds to the English word medial and is used to express relative location rather than size or shape.

Structures described as medial are closer to the sagittal midline than their counterparts. For example, the medial malleolus is the inner ankle bone; the medial wall of the orbit; and the medial aspect of a limb segment refers to the side nearer the midline. The term is routinely used in clinical anatomy to distinguish between structures on the inner (medial) side versus the outer (lateral) side.

The concept is tied to anatomical planes, especially the midsagittal plane, which divides the body into left and right halves. Mediaalne is often used alongside other directional terms such as proximal and distal to describe relative location along limbs or along anatomical columns.

In practice, describing a structure as medial helps in planning surgical approaches, interpreting imaging, and assessing symmetry. For instance, discussions about the knee may reference the medial collateral ligament, or about the nose and nasal cavities in reference to their medial positions relative to the face.

Origin and usage: the term derives from Latin medialis and is used in Estonian medical and anatomical terminology with the same meaning as the English term medial.