Heart

Question 1

coronary angiography

Answer 1

catheter passed into ascending aorta through some artery (often femoral) and injection of radioplaque allows examination of coronary arteries with angiograms

Question 2

echocardiography

Answer 2

method of graphically recording ultrasound results of the position of heart and motion of the heart

Question 3

doppler echocardiography

Answer 3

demonstrates and records the flow of blood through the heart and great valves–used for diagnosing septal defects

Question 4

coronary artery disease

Answer 4

One of leading causes of death. Also know as coronary heart disease and results in reduced blood supply to the vital myocardial tissue. Has many causes including myocardial infarction, coronary atherosclerosis, and slowly progressive coronary artery disease

Question 5

myocardial infartion

Answer 5

Sudden occlusion of a major artery by an embolus. Region of myocardium supplied by occluded vessel becomes infarcted (rendered bloodless) and undergoes necrosis.
The area of myocardium that has undergone necrosis constitutes the “myocardial infraction”

Question 6

most common areas of occlusion for MI

Answer 6

1. anterior IV (LAD) branch of the LAD (40-50%)
2. RCA (30-40%)
3. Circumflex branch of the LCA (15-20%)

Question 7

coronary atherosclerosis

Answer 7

Lipid deposits in intima (lining layer) of coronary arteries and results in stenosis of the lumina in the arteries
-may be compensated for by collateral channels expanding, but myocardium may still not receive enough blood and myocardial ischemia may result in MI

Question 8

slowly progressive coronary artery disease

Answer 8

The slow occlusion of a coronary artery. Effects may be lessened by increased collateral branches and anastomosis that are beneficial for CAD, but may not be able to prevent a sudden artery occlusion

Question 9

Angina pectoris

Answer 9

Pain that originates in the heart. Brief but mod. severe constricting pain deep to the sternum such as tightness in the thorax. Result of ischemia that falls short of necrosis.

• often caused by periods of anaerobic metabolism and lactic acid in myocardium
• relieved by rest or sublingual nitroglycerin (dilation of arteries)

Question 10

coronary bypass surgury

Answer 10

Segment of artery or vein connected to ascending aorta and anastomosed with cardiac artery distal to stenosis. Often use great saphenous vein or radial artery

Question 11

percutaneous transluminal angioplasty

Answer 11

Pass a catheter with small inflatable balloon attached to its tip into obstructed artery and inflate to flatten atherosclerotic plaque, increasing circulation

Question 12

thrombokinase

Answer 12

enzymes injected via catheter to dissolve a blood clot.

Question 13

intravascular stent

Answer 13

Maintain dilation of artery. composed of rigid or semirigid tubular meshes collapsed during introduction.

Question 14

collateral circulation of smallest cardiac veins

Answer 14

reversal of flow may bring luminal blood to capillary beds improving circulation, but not likely able to prevent MI

Question 15

electrocardiogram

Answer 15

ECG or EKG. Recording of passage of electrical impulses over the heart from the SA node

Question 16

heart block

Answer 16

Branches supplying AV bundle (LAD), or SA and AV nodes (RCA), are affected by an occlusion leading to damage to parts of conduction system.
-ventricles begin to contract independently at their own rate (25-30 times per minute)

Question 17

bundle branch block

Answer 17

Damage to one branch bundle will result in excitation continuing in unaffected branch, with normal contraction rate that then spreads to other ventricle via myogenic contraction producing a late asynchronous contraction.

Question 18

Artificial cardiac pacemaker

Answer 18

A pulse generator (battery pack), a wire and an electrode are implanted and the wire is inserted through a vein followed with a fluoroscope. The terminal electrode passed through SVC to right atrium and through the tricuspid valve into right ventricle and fixed to trabeculae carneae

Question 19

Fibrillation

Answer 19

Multiple, rapid, circuitous contractions or twitching or muscular fibers including cardiac muscle.

• atrial fibrillation: uncoordinated twitching of different parts of atrial walls with ventricles responding at irregular intervals. circulation usually satisfactory.
• ventricular circulation: rapid twitching movements that do not pump. fatal if allowed to persist

Question 20

defibrillation

Answer 20

electric shock to heart given through thoracic wall via large electrodes ceases all of the cardiac movements and a few seconds later the heart may restart

Question 21

cardiac referred pain

Answer 21

Anginal pain is felt as radiating from the substernal and left pectoral regions to the left shoulder and the medial aspect of the left upper limb (innervated by medial cut. n.).
Visceral afferent nerves coming from the heart, and which follow the sympathetic nerves, synapse with somatic afferent neurons (say from the arm) in the spinal chord, often through T1-T5.