The Cardiovascular system - The Heart

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Give a definition of the cardiovascular system
It is made up of a pump (the heart) and various types of pipes (blood vessels) that convey oxygenated blood away (arterial) from the heart and deoxygenated blood (venous) to the heart where it will be pumped onto the the lungs where it is oxygenated
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What is the two main types of tissue the heart is composed of?
The Contractile Cells and the Conducting Cells
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Explain Contractile Cells in the heart
Contractile cells make up the majority of the heart (the atrial & ventricular tissues) and are responsible for the working cells of the heart. Electricity passes through the cells and leads to force & pressure for the contraction & ejection of blood.
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Explain Conducting cells
These cells are specialised muscle cells which are responsible for the spread of action potentials across the entire myocardium, and generate action potentials meaning they are responsible for the rhythmic beating of the heart.
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Conducting cells make up which tissues?
SA Node, the atrial inter-nodal tracts, AV Node, Bundle of his, and the Purkinje system.
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What cells are responsible for the rhythmic beating of the heart?
The conducting cells including the SA and AV Node.
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Explain the process of the heart beat being initiated
Action potentials are created in the SA Node, travel through left & right atria, to the AV Node, down to the bundle of his, to the left and right bundle branches, and down to the purkinje system
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When the action potentials reach the purkinje system what happens?
The purkinje system is a very fast paced system which allows the contraction and ejection of blood which creates the normal sinus rhythm.
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What changes happen to the heart at birth?
A foetal circulation changes into an adult circulation system within a matter of hours or days, The umbilical artery & vein and the ductus arteriosus either disappear or turn into ligaments. The ductus arteriosus & the formen ovale should close up
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Why should the ductus arteriosus & the formen ovale close up at birth?
Because when the ductus arteriosus & the formen ovale close up this will stop the left to right shunt of blood in the heart, as now the blood needs to travel to the lungs for the baby to breath.
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What happens if the foramen ovale does not close at birth?
If the foramen ovale does not close this is called a patent foramen ovale, generally it does not cause complications but because the left to right shunt of blood in the heart will carry on blood clots could form.
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What happens if the ductus arteriosus does not close at birth?
If the ductus arteriosus does not close this can lead to increased pulmonary blood flow which can lead to the arteries becoming narrow causing pulmonary hypertension which can cause lots of respiratory problems.
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What is blood pressue?
Blood pressure is the force of blood against your artery walls. There are 2 readings which measure your blood pressure- systolic and diastolic.
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Explain what systolic and diastolic measurements are
Systolic is the higher number which measures the force of blood being pushed around your body when your heart contracts. Diastolic is the lower number that measures when the heart relaxes between beats.
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What is high blood pressure?
High blood pressure is when your blood pressure is always higher than it should be. This is called Hypertension and is when your blood pressure is always above 140/90mm Hg.
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Is having high blood pressure dangerous?
High blood pressure makes your artery walls less stretchy and damages the walls of your arteries. This makes fatty deposits easier to build up and limits the circulation of blood and oxygen -which can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
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What is the name of high and low blood pressure?
High blood pressure = Hypertension, low blood pressure = Hypotension
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What is a high blood pressure reading?
A high blood pressure reading (hypertension) is a reading of over 140/90mmHg
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What is a low blood pressure reading?
A low blood pressure reading (hypotension) is a reading less than 90/60mmHg
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What is an ideal blood pressure measurement?
Between 90/60mmHg and 120/80mmHg
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What is Peripheral Vascular Resistance?
It is the resistance in the circulatory system which is used to create blood pressure. Narrower tubes cause more resistance and wider tubes cause less resistance as it allows more blood to flow. Clogged up tubes also cause more resistance.
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What are the 2 types of processes to use to get a lot of blood to a particular area?
Vasoconstriction and Vasodilation
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What is Vasoconstriction?
Vasoconstriction is when the blood vessels constrict making them narrow, it happens when smooth muscles in the blood vessel walls tighten. Vasoconstriction makes the heart pump harder to get blood through the constricted veins & arteries =higher bp
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What is Vasodilation?
Vasodilation is the widening of the blood vessels which happens from the relaxation of of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls. Vasodilation increases blood flow and lowers blood pressure.
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Which part of the heart does the blood enter on the right side of the heart?
It enters through your superior and inferior vena cava. The blood that enters the right side is blood your body has already used, there is no oxygen in it and is coming to the heart to be filtered through the lungs to get oxygen back through the body
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Which part of the heart does the blood enter on the left side of the heart?
The blood enters through the pulmonary vein on the left side, the blood is oxygenated from flowing through the lungs and wants to transport the blood through the whole body.
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What parts of the heart has the same name on either side?
The right and left atrium and the right and left ventricle.
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Describe the blood flow through the right side of the heart
The blood enters through the superior and inferior vena cava, then enters the right atrium then through the tricuspid valve to the right ventricle, then through the pulmonary valve to the pulmonary artery to then be filtered through the lungs.
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Describe the blood flow through the left side of the heart
The blood enters through the pulmonary vein to the left atrium, passes through the bicuspid valve to the left ventricle then shoots up to the aortic valve then out through the aorta to supply blood to the body.
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What is the mission for the right and left side of the heart?
The right side of the hearts mission is to take the deoxygenated blood that it receives straight to the lungs to get oxygenated. The left side gets blood that left the lungs to travel through the whole body.
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How many chambers does the heart have & name them
The heart has 4 chambers = The right atrium, the left atrium, the right ventricle and the left ventricle
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What is the cardiovascular system made up of?
The heart and various types of blood vessels
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What is the circulatory system made up of?
The heart, the blood, the blood vessels (the 3 main components) and the Lymphatic system.
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Where is the fossa ovalis located?
Located in the right atrium next to the interior of the septum
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Where is the chordae tendineae located?
They are heart strings connected to both the tricuspid and bicuspid valves in the heart in the ventricles.
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Where is the Interventricular septum located?
Located in the wall which seperates the left and right ventricle
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Where is the papillary muscles located?
They are connected to the chordae tendineaes (they hang off the bottom of them) below and sit in the ventricles
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Where is the visceral pericardium located?
It is a sack which surrounds the heart, it is one layer and known as the epicardium
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What nerves supply makes the heart go faster?
The sympathetic nervous system is what makes the heart go faster as it is the part of the nervous system which responds to stress. The sympathetic nervous system releases the hormone Noradrenaline which increases the heart rate.
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What nerves supply makes the heart go slower?
The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for the resting of the body, it releases the hormone acetylcholine which decreases the heart rate.
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What is the two main types of tissue the heart is composed of?

Back

The Contractile Cells and the Conducting Cells

Card 3

Front

Explain Contractile Cells in the heart

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

Explain Conducting cells

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

Conducting cells make up which tissues?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
View more cards

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