Which term is used to refer to the spinous process?

Which term is used to refer to the spinous process?

• A. Transverse process (TVP)
• B. Spinous process (SP)
• C. Mammillary Process (MP)
• D. Report of findings (ROF)

Answer: (B)

Think about how the vertebrae are labeled by their projections. The projection that sticks out from the back of the vertebral arch is the spinous process, the part you can feel along the midline of the spine. The term that names this projection is simply the spinous process. It differs from the transverse process, which projects to the side, and from the mammillary process, a small bump on the lumbar vertebrae’s superior articular process. A “report of findings” isn’t an anatomical structure at all. So the correct term used for this posterior projection is the spinous process.

Think about how the vertebrae are labeled by their projections. The projection that sticks out from the back of the vertebral arch is the spinous process, the part you can feel along the midline of the spine. The term that names this projection is simply the spinous process. It differs from the transverse process, which projects to the side, and from the mammillary process, a small bump on the lumbar vertebrae’s superior articular process. A “report of findings” isn’t an anatomical structure at all. So the correct term used for this posterior projection is the spinous process.