1.3 Structure of The Heart Flashcards
What does the right side of the heart do?
Receives blood returning from the tissues and sends it to the lungs to drop off carbon dioxide and pick up oxygen.
What does the left side of the heart do?
Receives oxygenated blood from the lungs and sends it off round the body again to the tissues.
What does myogenic mean?
The heart can beat automatically without stimulation by nerves ad is co-ordinated by a region at the top of the right side of the heart known as the pacemaker.
Why is the heart unusual?
- It is myogenic.
- It does not become fatigued even over a lifetime.
What does each side of the heart consist of?
Two chambers:
- The upper thin-walled atria.
- The lower, thicker-walled ventricles.
What is between the atria and ventricles?
An opening with a one-way valve that allows blood to move down but not back up.
What is this valve called on the right side of the heart?
Tricuspid.
What is this valve called on the left side of the heart?
Bicuspid or mitral.
What is attached the the right atrium?
Two large veins that bring blood back from the tissues:
- The superior vena cava that leads from the arms and the head.
- The inferior vena cava that brings blood from the lower body and the legs.
What leads out from the right ventricle?
The pulmonary artery which has a branch going to each lung.
Where is the semi-lunar/pulmonary arterial valve located and what does it do?
It is located in the entrance to the pulmonary artery and allow blood to flow out the heart but not back in again.
What do pulmonary veins do?
They return blood to the left atrium from the lungs and the aorta and takes it from the left ventricle through the aortic semi-lunar valve around the body.
What is the aorta?
The largest artery in the body.
What do the coronary arteries do?
They supply the heart with oxygen.
Where are the coronary arteries located?
They branch from the aorta. They branch out like a tree, getting smaller as they burrow into the muscle cells.
