Cardiac Structure And Function Flashcards
Primary function of the heart
Generate pressure to drive blood flow to tissues
The sequence of events with each heartbeat including diastole and systole
Cardiac Cycle
The total blood flow per minute in the cardiovascular circuit
Cardiac Output (CO)
Cardiac output equation
CO = HR x SV
What are the four chambers of the heart?
R atrium, R ventricle, L atrium, L ventricle
The _____ side of the heart pumps blood to the lungs, while the _____ side of the heart pumps blood to the body
Right; left
Structures that travel away from the heart carrying oxygenated blood to the tissues
Arteries
Oxygen is transferred to tissues through
Diffusion
The movement of molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of lower concentration
Diffusion
Diffusion of water across a semipermeable membrane
Osmosis
Deoxygenated blood returns to the _____ system
Venous
Structures that travel towards the heart carrying deoxygenated blood
Veins
What are the three layers of the heart wall?
Epicardium, myocardium, endocardium
Visceral layer of the serous pericardium
Epicardium
The middle and most prominent layer of the heart wall composed of cardiac muscle
Myocardium
Why is the left side of the heart thicker than the right?
It pumps blood to the rest of the body, so it requires more muscle
Layer of the heart wall that lines the cardiac chambers
Endocardium
Structures that open and close valves
Papillary muscles
The papillary muscles are connected to the heart valves via the
Chordae tendineae
AV valves
Mitral and tricuspid
Semilunar valves
Pulmonary and aortic
Which valves close to make the S1 or “lub” sound?
Tricuspid and mitral
Which valves close to make the S2 or “dub” sound?
Aortic and pulmonic
Tips for listening to heart sounds
Concentrate, avoid auscultating through clothing or dressing, keep stethoscope tubing off body and other surfaces
S1 or “Lub” marks the beginning of
Systole (contraction)
S2 or “dub” marks the beginning of
Diastole (relaxation/filling)
Flow of blood through the heart
Superior and inferior vena cava, right atrium, tricuspid valve, right ventricle, pulmonic valve, pulmonary artery to lungs, pulmonary veins, left atrium, mitral valve, left ventricle, aortic valve, aorta, body
Which valve controls blood flow from the left atrium to the left ventricle?
Mitral (left AV valve)
Which valve controls blood flow from the right atrium to the right ventricle?
Tricuspid (Right AV valve)
Which valve controls blood flow from the right ventricle to the pulmonary artery and lungs?
Pulmonic valve
Which valve controls blood flow from the left ventricle to the aorta?
Aortic valve
Cardiac impulses pass from the atrium to the ventricles though the
Conduction pathway
Cardiac conduction pathway
SA node, AV node, bundle of his, left and right bundle branches, purkinje fibers
Spontaneous electrical activity generates
Regular rhythm of muscle contractions or heart rate
The heart’s pacemaker
Sinoatrial (SA) node
Typical rate of the SA node
60-100 bpm
Typical rate of the atrioventricular (AV) node
40-60 bpm
Function of AV node
Slows impulse conduction between atrium and ventricle, allowing atrium to fill ventricles with blood before ventricles contract
If SA and AV nodes fail, ventricles can generate their own impulse at a rate of
20-40 bpm
What shows electrical activity of the heart recorded by skin electrodes?
ECG
When the heart cells are resting or negatively charged on the inside, they are __________
Polarized
What causes contraction?
The movement of sodium inside cells due to increase permeability as a result of electrical changes.
After contraction, sodium moves back out of cells causing relaxation or __________
Repolarization
Concentration of ions inside and outside of cells
Primarily sodium (Na) outside, potassium (K) inside
What does a P-Wave represent?
Atrial depolarization
Normal duration of P-Wave
<0.8 seconds
PR interval is measured from
The beginning of P-Wave to the beginning of QRS
What does the PR interval represent?
The time the electrical impulse takes to travel from SA node through AV node, His-pukinje system, to activate ventricular myocardial cells
Normal duration of PR interval
120-200 ms OR 0.12-0.20 seconds
What does a longer PR interval indicate?
AV block (1st degree)
What does a shorter PR interval indicate?
The impulse is bypassing the AV node (ex: WPW syndrome)
PR interval is typically _____, but may be depressed in pericarditis
Flat
What does the QRS complex represent?
Ventricular depolarization
Normal duration of QRS complex
0.06-0.10 seconds
What does a longer QRS complex suggest?
Disruption of conduction system (BBB, ventricular rhythms), and metabolic issues such as hyperkalemia and TCA OD
The point at which QRS complex finished and ST segment begins
J point
Negative deflections of QRS complex
Q (1st), S
Positive deflection of QRS complex
R
What does the ST segment represent?
The period when ventricles remain depolarized
The ST segment is usually isoelectric, but may be depressed with
Ischemia, infarction, pericarditis