What is the parasagittal plane?

• A. Divides it into unequal halves
• B. Divides the left and right halves
• C. Divides front and back
• D. Divides upper and lower

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is how sagittal planes cut the body. A sagittal plane is a vertical plane that runs front to back and divides the body into left and right portions. When the plane slices exactly along the midline, it creates two equal halves—that’s the midsagittal (median) plane. A parasagittal plane, however, is any sagittal plane offset from that midline, so the left and right parts are not equal. That’s why this plane divides the body into unequal halves.

The other planes pair with different directions: the frontal (coronal) plane splits front from back, and the transverse (horizontal) plane splits upper from lower.