The Midline of the body is the imaginary line that divides the body in to the right side and left side. The midline lies in what’s referred to as the Sagittal plane. Where the sagittal plane could mean any “slice” that runs top to bottom and front to back, the midline is actually the imaginary “middle” line running top to bottom.
So, why is this important and how it apply to caregiving?
This blog page is part of the glossary that will help caregivers understand and be better informed when conversing with medical providers in general and rehab specialists specifically.
When working with a client, many occupational and physical therapists use the midline in reference point when helping people with balance and activities that will increase function in general. For a client that may have had a stroke, they may have trouble with balance and veer to one side or the other when standing or walking. Therapists will attempt to help them “return to the midline” where they are balancing evenly on either foot.
That same stroke victim may have only have use of one arm and have occupational therapists working to help get that patient comfortable “reaching across the midline” to reach across their body to retrieve something, or perform an activity while maintaining their balance. This improves a person’s independence with activities of daily living and thereby decreasing the daily burden on caregivers.
While it may not seem that important, understanding these types of terms will empower caregivers and eliminate the need to ask “what does that mean?” when conversing with health care professionals.