How Does Your Heart Pump Blood

Heart Anatomy: By The Numbers

1. Superior vena cava: Receives blood from the upper body; delivers blood into the right atrium.

2. Inferior vena cava: Receives blood from the lower extremities, pelvis and abdomen, and delivers blood into the right atrium.

3. Right atrium: Receives blood returning to the heart from the superior and inferior vena cava; transmits blood to the right ventricle, which pumps blood to the lungs for oxygenation.

4. Tricuspid valve: Allows blood to pass from the right atrium to the right ventricle; prevents blood from flowing back into the right atrium as the heart pumps .

5. Right ventricle: Receives blood from the right atrium; pumps blood into the pulmonary artery.

6. Pulmonary valve: Allows blood to pass into the pulmonary arteries; prevents blood from flowing back into the right ventricle.

7. Pulmonary arteries: Carry oxygen-depleted blood from the heart to the lungs.

8. Pulmonary veins: Deliver oxygen-rich blood from the lungs to the left atrium of the heart.

9. Left atrium: Receives blood returning to the heart from the pulmonary veins.

10. Mitral valve: Allows blood to flow into the left ventricle; prevents blood from flowing back into the left atrium.

11. Left ventricle: Receives oxygen-rich blood from the left atrium and pumps blood into the aorta.

12. Aortic valve: Allows blood to pass from the left ventricle to the aorta; prevents backflow of blood into the left ventricle.

13. Aorta: Distributes blood throughout the body from the heart.

Blood Flow Positive And Negative Effects

A healthy heart normally beats anywhere from 60 to 70 times per minute when youre at rest. This rate can be higher or lower depending on your health and physical fitness; athletes generally have a lower resting heart rate, for example.

Your heart rate rises with physical activity, as your muscles consume oxygen while they work. The heart works harder to bring oxygenated blood where it is needed.

Disrupted or irregular heartbeats can affect blood flow through the heart. This can happen in multiple ways:

• Electrical impulses that regulate your heartbeat are impacted, causing an arrythmia, or irregular heartbeat. Atrial fibrillation is a common form of this.
• Conduction disorders, or heart blocks, affect the cardiac conduction system, which regulates how electrical impulses move through the heart. The type of blockan atrioventricular block or bundle branch blockdepends on where it occurs in the conduction system.
• Damaged or diseased valves can become ineffective or leak blood in the wrong direction.
• A blocked blood vessel, which can happen gradually or suddenly, can disrupt blood flow, such as during a heart attack.

If you experience an irregular heartbeat or cardiac symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath, seek medical help immediately.

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What Are The Coronary Arteries Of The Heart

Like all organs, your heart is made of tissue that requires a supply of oxygen and nutrients. Although its chambers are full of blood, the heart receives no nourishment from this blood. The heart receives its own supply of blood from a network of arteries, called the coronary arteries.

Two major coronary arteries branch off from the aorta near the point where the aorta and the left ventricle meet:

• Right coronary artery supplies the right atrium and right ventricle with blood. It branches into the posterior descending artery, which supplies the bottom portion of the left ventricle and back of the septum with blood.
• Left main coronary artery branches into the circumflex artery and the left anterior descending artery. The circumflex artery supplies blood to the left atrium, side and back of the left ventricle, and the left anterior descending artery supplies the front and bottom of the left ventricle and the front of the septum with blood.

These arteries and their branches supply all parts of the heart muscle with blood.

Coronary artery disease occurs when plaque builds up in the coronary arteries and prevents the heart from getting the enriched blood it needs. If this happens, a network of tiny blood vessels in the heart that aren’t usually open called collateral vessels may enlarge and become active. This allows blood to flow around the blocked artery to the heart muscle, protecting the heart tissue from injury.

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How Much Blood Does Your Heart Pump In One Hour

With each beat, it pumps about 55-80 ml of blood for adults and about 25-85 ml per beat for kids. About 6,000-7,500 litres of blood is pumped daily by an adult heart. The average adult body contains about five quarters of the blood that circulates continuously throughout the body. 70ml .

The Heart Is A Muscle

Your heart is really a muscle. It’s located a little to the left of the middle of your chest, and it’s about the size of your fist. There are lots of muscles all over your body in your arms, in your legs, in your back, even in your behind.

But the heart muscle is special because of what it does. The heart sends blood around your body. The blood provides your body with the oxygen and nutrients it needs. It also carries away waste.

Your heart is sort of like a pump, or two pumps in one. The right side of your heart receives blood from the body and pumps it to the lungs. The left side of the heart does the exact opposite: It receives blood from the lungs and pumps it out to the body.

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Blood Vessels Of The Heart

The blood vessels of the heart include:

• venae cavae deoxygenated blood is delivered to the right atrium by these two veins. One carries blood from the head and upper torso, while the other carries blood from the lower body
• pulmonary arteries deoxygenated blood is pumped by the right ventricle into the pulmonary arteries that link to the lungs
• pulmonary veins the pulmonary veins return oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium of the heart
• aorta this is the largest artery of the body, and it runs the length of the trunk. Oxygenated blood is pumped into the aorta from the left ventricle. The aorta subdivides into various branches that deliver blood to the upper body, trunk and lower body
• coronary arteries like any other organ or tissue, the heart needs oxygen. The coronary arteries that supply the heart are connected directly to the aorta, which carries a rich supply of oxygenated blood
• coronary veins deoxygenated blood from heart muscle is ‘dumped’ by coronary veins directly into the right atrium.

Angioplasty Bypass Surgery And Stents: Helping Hungry Hearts

Your heart receives its blood from the coronary arteries. These arteries begin life big, soft and smooth inside. As we grow older, we damage those once-supple arteries with stress, fast food, not enough exercise and age. Over decades, they collect plaque along their inner walls, causing them to harden and narrow. This condition is known as atherosclerosis. Unchecked, atherosclerosis may worsen and become coronary artery disease . Doctors tend to shorten it to just CAD or CHD.

As CAD advances, a number of things can happen. For example, if a portion of your heart muscle is receiving some — but not enough — oxygen due to partially blocked arteries, it won’t be permanently damaged, but the muscle won’t like the situation one bit. It files a formal complaint with you in the form of chest pain called angina. Stable angina is the lesser of two evils; it’s predictable and reversible. Unstable angina, however, could signal an unstable plaque that could cause a heart attack.

You may not feel this chest pain when you’re relaxing because your heart doesn’t require much blood when you’re sunning yourself by the pool. If you start swimming laps, however, it needs more than your narrowed arteries can deliver, and this hurts.

If your coronary arteries become dangerously blocked, doctors may discuss one of the following procedures with you.

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Deoxygenated Blood Returns To Your Heart Through The Superior Vena Cava And Inferior Vena Cava To Your Right Atrium

• Capillaries separate oxygenated blood from deoxygenated blood and arteries from veins
• After passing through the capillaries, blood is deoxygenated and needs to head back to the heart to be pumped to the lungs to pick up oxygen
• The Superior Vena Cava is the vein that gets deoxygenated blood from the upper body and returns it to the heart
• The Inferior Vena Cava is the vein that gets deoxygenated blood from the lower body and returns it to the heart

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Components Of The Aorta

The aortic arch contains peripheral baroreceptors and chemoreceptors that relay information concerning blood pressure, blood pH, and carbon dioxide levels to the medulla oblongata of the brain. This information is processed by the brain and the autonomic nervous system mediates the homeostatic responses that involve feedback in the lungs and kidneys. The aorta extends around the heart and travels downward, diverging into the iliac arteries. The five components of the aorta are:

The ascending aorta lies between the heart and the arch of aorta. It breaks off into the aortic sinuses, some of which form the coronary arteries.

The arch of aorta is the peak of the aorta, which breaks off into the left carotid artery, brachiocephalic trunk, and the left subclavian artery.

The descending aorta is the section from the arch of aorta to the point where it divides into the common iliac arteries. It is subdivided into the thoracic and abdominal aorta.

The thoracic aorta is the part of the descending aorta above the diaphragm. It branches off into the bronchial, mediastinal, esophageal, and phrenic arteries.

The abdominal aorta is the part of the descending aorta below the diaphragm, which divides into the iliac arteries and branches into the renal and suprarenal arteries. This part of the aorta is vulnerable to bursting and hemorrhage from persistently high blood pressure.

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Easy Way To Remember Blood Flow Through The Heart

The blood flow of the heart is something you will have to learn in nursing school . When I was in nursing school I hated learning about the heart and promised myself that I would never enter into cardiology. Well, to make a long story short, I entered into cardiology and have never left it. I learned to heart the heart.

In this article, I am going to show you how to easily remember the blood flow of the heart. I found that learning the blood flow of the heart is best done by actually visualizing how the heart is set-up and how it flows through the muscle to the body.

After reviewing these notes, dont forget to take the heart blood flow quiz.

The Flow Of Blood In And Out Of The Heart

Right atrium Blood;that has been circulating in the body becomes depleted of oxygen and comes to the right atrium via two vessels called the superior and inferior vena cava.

From the right atrium, blood flows to the right ventricle through the tricuspid valve. This valve allows the blood to flow only from the right atrium to the right ventricle, but not vice-versa.

Right ventricle The blood in this chamber is then pumped out of the heart to the lungs through the pulmonary artery where the blood gains oxygen once again and is sent back to the heart. The entry into the pulmonary artery is controlled by a valve called the pulmonary valve.

Left atrium This chamber now receives the blood;that has gained oxygen from the lungs and is now oxygenated. The blood is brought in by the pulmonary veins.

From the left atrium, the blood enters the left ventricle through the mitral valve, which also only allows unidirectional flow from the atrium to the ventricle.

Left ventricle This chamber of the heart is now filled with oxygen-rich blood, which can be used by the various tissues across the body. This oxygenated blood is sent into systemic circulation by the aorta and is controlled by the aortic valve.

Systemic Circulation The left side of the heart pumps good blood into a vessel called the aorta, which then supplies blood to all the systems of the body.

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The Four Chambers Of The Heart

Your heart has a right and left side separated by a wall called the septum. Each side has a small collecting chamber called an atrium, which leads into a large pumping chamber called a ventricle. There are four chambers: the left atrium and right atrium , and the left ventricle and right ventricle .The right side of your heart collects blood on its return from the rest of our body. The blood entering the right side of your heart is low in oxygen. Your heart pumps the blood from the right side of your heart to your lungs so it can receive more oxygen. Once it has received oxygen, the blood returns directly to the left side of your heart, which then pumps it out again to all parts of your body through an artery called the aorta.;Blood pressure refers to the amount of force the pumping blood exerts on arterial walls.

How Do You Know How Fast Your Heart Is Beating

You can tell how fast your heart is beating by feeling your pulse. Your heart-rate is the amount of times your heart beats in one minute.

You will need a watch with a second hand.

Place your index and middle finger of your hand on the inner wrist of the other arm, just below the base of the thumb.

You should feel a tapping or pulsing against your fingers.

Count the number of taps you feel in 10 seconds.

Multiply that number by 6 to find out your heart-rate for one minute:

Pulse in 10 seconds x 6 = \__ beats per minute

When feeling your pulse, you can also tell if your heart rhythm is regular or not.

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Where Are Your Blood Vessels Located

There are blood vessels throughout your body. The main artery is your aorta, which connects to the left side of your heart. It runs down through your chest, diaphragm and abdomen, branching off in many areas. Near your pelvis, your aorta branches into two arteries that supply blood to your lower body and legs.

The main vein in your body is the vena cava. The superior vena cava is in the upper right part of your chest. It carries blood from your head, neck, arms and chest back to your heart. The inferior vena cava is near the right side of your diaphragm. It brings blood from your legs, feet, abdomen and pelvis back to your heart.

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The Heart’s Electrical System

The atria and ventricles work together, alternately contracting and relaxing to pump blood through your heart. The electrical system of your heart is the power source that makes this possible.

Your heartbeat is triggered by electrical impulses that travel down a special pathway through your heart:

SA node known as the hearts natural pacemaker. The impulse starts in a small bundle of specialized cells located in the right atrium, called the SA node. The electrical activity spreads through the walls of the atria and causes them to contract. This forces blood into the ventricles. The SA node sets the rate and rhythm of your heartbeat. Normal heart rhythm is often called normal sinus rhythm because the SA node fires regularly.

AV node . The AV node is a cluster of cells in the center of the heart between the atria and ventricles, and acts like a gate that slows the electrical signal before it enters the ventricles. This delay gives the atria time to contract before the ventricles do.

His-Purkinje Network. This pathway of fibers sends the impulse to the muscular walls of the ventricles and causes them to contract. This forces blood out of the heart to the lungs and body.

The SA node fires another impulse and the cycle begins again.

At rest, a normal heart beats around 50 to 99 times a minute. Exercise, emotions, fever and some medications can cause your heart to beat faster, sometimes to well over 100 beats per minute.

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How Fast Does The Normal Heart Beat

How fast the heart beats depends on the body’s need for oxygen-rich blood. At rest, the SA node causes your heart to beat about 50 to 100 times each minute. During activity or excitement, your body needs more oxygen-rich blood; the heart rate rises to well over 100 beats per minute.

Medications and some medical conditions may affect how fast your heart-rate is at rest and with exercise.

What Kind Of Blood Comes Back Into The Heart & Then Goes To The Lungs

The heart consists of four chambers in which blood flows. Blood enters the right atrium and passes through the right ventricle. The right ventricle pumps the blood to the lungs where it becomes oxygenated. The oxygenated blood is brought back to the heart by the pulmonary veins which enter the left atrium.

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How Does The Heart Beat

The atria and ventricles work together, alternately contracting and relaxing to pump blood through your heart. The electrical system of the heart is the power source that makes this possible.

Your heartbeat is triggered by electrical impulses that travel down a special pathway through the heart.

• The impulse starts in a small bundle of specialized cells called the SA node , located in the right atrium. This node is known as the heart’s natural pacemaker. The electrical activity spreads through the walls of the atria and causes them to contract.
• A cluster of cells in the center of the heart between the atria and ventricles, the AV node is like a gate that slows the electrical signal before it enters the ventricles. This delay gives the atria time to contract before the ventricles do.
• The His-Purkinje network is a pathway of fibers that sends the impulse to the muscular walls of the ventricles, causing them to contract.

At rest, a normal heart beats around 50 to 90Ã times a minute. Exercise, emotions, fever, and some medications can cause your heart to beat faster, sometimes to well over 100 beats per minute.