Cardiovascular System Flashcards
where is the heart situated?
The heart is a muscular pumping organ located medial to the lungs along the body’s midline in the thoracic region.
what are the two primary circulation loops?
systemic circualtion
pulmonary circualtion
Explain the pulmonary circualtion
Pulmonary circulation transports deoxygenated blood from the right side of the heart to the lungs, where the blood picks up oxygen and returns to the left side of the heart.
Explain the systemic circualtion
Systemic circulation carries highly oxygenated blood from the left side of the heart to all of the tissues of the body (with the exception of the heart and lungs). Systemic circulation removes wastes from body tissues and returns deoxygenated blood to the right side of the heart.
what are the three types of blood vessels
artiers
veins
capilaries
explain arteirs
Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart. Blood carried by arteries is usually highly oxygenated. The pulmonary trunk and arteries of the pulmonary circulation loop provide an exception to this rule — these arteries carry deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs to be oxygenated.
Arteries face high levels of blood pressure as they carry blood being pushed from the heart under great force. To withstand this pressure, the walls of the arteries are thicker, more elastic, and more muscular than those of other vessels.
explain capilaries
Capillaries are the smallest and thinnest of the blood vessels in the body and also the most common. They can be found running throughout almost every tissue of the body and border the edges of the body’s avascular tissues. Capillaries connect to arterioles on one end and venules on the other.
Capillaries carry blood very close to the cells of the tissues of the body in order to exchange gases, nutrients, and waste products. The walls of capillaries consist of only a thin layer of endothelium so that there is the minimum amount of structure possible between the blood and the tissues. The endothelium acts as a filter to keep blood cells inside of the vessels while allowing liquids, dissolved gases, and other chemicals to diffuse along their concentration gradients into or out of tissues.
what side of the heart is involved in systemic circulatoion
The left atrium and left ventricle of the heart are the pumping chambers for the systemic circulation loop.
what side of the heart is involved in pulmonary circulatoion
The pumping chambers of the heart that support the pulmonary circulation loop are the right atrium and right ventricle.
explain arterioles
Arterioles are narrower arteries that branch off from the ends of arteries and carry blood to capillaries. They face much lower blood pressures than arteries due to their greater number, decreased blood volume, and distance from the direct pressure of the heart. Thus arteriole walls are much thinner than those of arteries. Arterioles, like arteries, are able to use smooth muscle to control their aperture and regulate blood flow and blood pressure.
