Heart Basics
How The Heart Works
The normal heart is a strong, muscular pump a little larger than a fist.
It pumps blood continuously through the circulatory system. Each day the
average heart "beats" (expands and contracts) 100,000 times
and pumps about 2,000 gallons of blood. In a 70-year lifetime, an average
human heart beats more than 2.5 billion times.
The circulatory system is the network of elastic tubes that carries blood
throughout the body. It includes the heart, lungs, arteries, arterioles
(ar-TE're-olz) (small arteries), and capillaries (KAP'ih-lair"eez)
(very tiny blood vessels). These blood vessels carry oxygen- and nutrient-rich
blood to all parts of the body. The circulatory system also includes venules
(VEN' yoolz) (small veins) and veins. These are the blood vessels
that carry oxygen- and nutrient-depleted blood back to the heart and lungs.
If all these vessels were laid end-to-end, they'd extend about 60,000
miles. That's enough to encircle the earth more than twice.
The circulating blood brings oxygen and nutrients to all the body's
organs and tissues, including the heart itself. It also picks up waste
products from the body's cells. These waste products are removed as
they're filtered through the kidneys, liver and lungs.
What is the heart's structure?
The heart has four chambers through which blood is pumped. The upper two
are the right and left atria. The lower two are the right and left ventricles.
Four valves open and close to let blood flow in only one direction when
the heart beats:
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The
tricuspid valve is between the right atrium and right ventricle.
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The
pulmonary or pulmonic valve is between the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery.
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The
mitral valve is between the left atrium and left ventricle.
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The
aortic valve is between the left ventricle and the aorta.
Each valve has a set of flaps (also called leaflets or cusps). The mitral
valve has two flaps. The others have three. Under normal conditions, the
valves let blood flow in just one direction. Blood flow occurs only when
there's a difference in pressure across the valves that causes them to open.
How does the heart pump blood?
A heart's four chambers must beat in an organized manner. This is governed
by an electrical impulse. A chamber of the heart contracts when an electrical
impulse moves across it. Such a signal starts in a small bundle of highly
specialized cells in the right atrium — the sinoatrial (SI'no-A'tre-al)
node (SA node), also called the sinus node. A discharge from this natural
"pacemaker" causes the heart to beat. This pacemaker generates
electrical impulses at a given rate, but emotional reactions and hormonal
factors can affect its rate of discharge. This lets the heart rate respond
to varying demands.
Information provided by the American Heart Association.