1. Anatomy of the Heart Flashcards
Difference between sagittal, frontal (coronal) and horizontal (transverse) views?
- Sagittal - through midline
- Frontal - separates front and back
- Horizontal - separates top and bottom (view from persons feet towards you)
Where is the heart located in the body?
- In the mediastinum
- Between left and right plural cavities
- Within the pericardium
What is the pericardium and what is it formed of?
- Fibroserous sac surround heart and its great vessels
- Fibrous (outer) and serous (inner) layer
- Serous layer formed of parietal (lines fibrous layer) and visceral (adheres to heart) - both layers are continuous but folded around so outer can become inner
- Pericardial fluid (serous pericardium) - between parietal and visceral layers - for movement and reduces friction
What is cardiac tamponade?
- Traumatic injury - ruptured blood vessel
- Fibrous layer doesn’t expand
- Pressure => damage => fatal
What is the pulmonary trunk?
- Leaves the right ventricle (venous blood)
- Bifurcates into left and right pulmonary artery
- Goes to the two lungs
What are the branches of the aortic arch?
• First the brachiocephalic trunk bifurcates into: right subclavian artery & right common carotid artery
• Left common carotid artery
• Left subclavian artery
(• some people may have a left brachiocephalic trunk)
What is the arrangement of the brachiocephalic veins?
- Right internal jugular vein + right subclavian vein => right brachiocephalic vein
- Left internal jugular vein + left subclavian => left brachiocephalic vein
- Left BCV crosses over and joins the right BCV to form the Superior Vena Cava
Where would you insert a catheter into the vena cava and why?
- On the right
- Right BCV goes vertically down into it
- Have to go round a corner if it was from the left (left BCV)
- Reduced chance of splitting
What does the blood pass through in the right side of the heart?
(• Venous blood) • Right atrium • Tricuspid valve • Right ventricle • Pulmonary valve • Pulmonary trunk
What is the tricuspid and pulmonary valve made up of?
Tricuspid
• Anterior cusp
• Septal cusp
• Posterior cusp
Pulmonary
• Left semilunar cusp
• Anterior semilunar cusp
• Right semilunar cusp
What does the blood pass through in the left side of the heart
(• Arterial blood) • Left atrium • Mitral valve • Left ventricle • Aortic valve • Aorta
What is the mitral valve made up of?
- Anterior cusp
* Posterior cusp
Describe the anatomy of the coronary arteries
- Points of origin of the coronary arteries - just about the aortic valve
- of the right CA - just about the right cusp of the aortic valve
- of the left CA - just about the left cusp of the aortic valve
- Left CA splits into circumflex branch (further left) and anterior interventricular branch (downwards)
Describe the anatomy of the coronary veins
- (looking from posterior) - small cardiac vein => (wide) coronary sinus - splits into posterior cardiac vein and great cardiac vein
- Great cardiac vein goes around and down the front (alongside anterior interventricular branch)
Describe the anatomy of the conducting system
- SA node
- (from right to left on diagrams) Posterior/Middle/Anterior internodal tract
- AV node
- Bachmann’s Bundle (left atrium)
- Right/left bundle branch towards the apex (insulation prevents unwanted contraction)
- Conduction pathways up the ventricles
Describe the anatomy of the vagus and laryngeal nerve in relation to the heart anatomy
- Left vagus nerve moves from behind the heart to the front of the aortic arch and alongside the left common carotid artery
- Right vagus nerve moves up from behind the heart and vena cava, and moves alongside the right common carotid artery
- Left and right laryngeal nerve move either-side of the trachea (above/behind the heart)
What joins the pulmonary trunk to the aortic arch?
Ligamentum arteriosum
What is the name of the last section of the aorta?
Thoracic aorta
What feeds into the left atrium?
• Right and left pulmonary veins (2 of each)
