Drugs Used in Cardiovascular System Disorders Flashcards
Afterload
The resistance (pressure) in arteries that must be overcome to empty blood from the ventricle.
Arrhythmia (dysrhythmia)
A variation from the normal rhythm.
Automaticity
The ability of cardiac muscle to generate impulses.
Bradyarrhythmia
Bradycardia associated with an irregularity of heart rhythm.
Bradycardia
A slower-than-normal heart rate.
Cardiac output
Amount of blood pumped by the heart per minute.
Cardiac remodeling
Change in the size, shape, structure, and physiology of the heart due to damage to the myocardium.
Chronotropic
Affecting the heart rate.
Depolarization
Neutralizing of the polarity of a cardiac cell by an inflow of sodium ions. Depolarization results in contraction of the cardiac cell and renders it incapable of further contraction until repolarization occurs.
Diastole
Relaxation phase when the chambers of the heart are filling with blood.
Inotropic
A drug that affects the strength or force of cardiac muscle contractions.
Preload
The volume of blood in the ventricles at the end of diastole.
Premature ventricular contraction (PVC)
Contraction of the ventricles without a corresponding contraction of the atria. PVCs arise from an irritable focus or foci in the ventricles.
Repolarization
The return of the cell membrane to its resting polarity after depolarization.
Stroke volume
The amount of blood ejected by the left ventricle with each beat.
