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The Cardiovascular System

 A closed system of the heart and
blood vessels
The heart pumps blood
Blood vessels allow blood to circulate
to all parts of the body
 The function of the cardiovascular
system is to deliver oxygen and
nutrients and to remove carbon
dioxide and other waste products
FUNCTIONS OF THE
HEART
1. Generating blood pressure
2. Routing blood
3. Ensuring one-way blood
flow
4. Regulating blood supply
 Heart Structure
The heart is the major The left side of the
organ of the Superior heart receives oxygenated
circulatory system VENA blood from the lungs via the
CAVA AORTA PULMONARY VEINS
It is a fist-sized muscular
pump consisting of The left side of the
four chambers heart pumps oxygenated
blood out into
The human heart the body’s arteries via
recirculates the entire the AORTA
blood volume (5 L)
every minute when Deoxygenated blood
the body is at rest PULMONARY
returns to the right side
ARTERY of the heart via the
The ability of the VENA CAVA
heart to perform such
work is due to the Deoxygenated blood
presence of specialized CORONARY is pumped to the
cardiac muscle in ARTERIES lungs via the
its walls PULMONARY
ARTERY
The job of the heart is to Heart muscle receives
pump blood around two its own supply of blood
separate circuits Inferior from the CORONARY
VENA ARTERIES
CAVA
Cardiovascular system Heart Cells
• Myocardial cells
(working cells)
– Contraction
• Electrical conduction
system cells
– Initiate and carry
electrical impulses
throughout heart
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Mechanical and Electrical
• Critical to remember that there is
mechanical aspects to heart
function=myofibrils and electrical
aspect
– Pacemaker cells and
– Resulting AP from these cells to working
muscle cells causes depolarization and
repolarization
 Heart Structure
Aorta

Pulmonary artery
Vena cavae
Pulmonary veins
Semilunar valves
Left atrium
Right atrium
Bicuspid valve
Tricuspid valve
Right ventricle Left ventricle
Septum
Cardiac muscle
(dividing wall)
 Heart Structure
The mammalian heart is
a muscular pump that consists
of four chambers
Two upper chambers, called the
atria, are thin walled cavities that
receive blood from veins
Two lower chambers, called the
ventricles, are thick walled cavities
that receive blood from the atria and
pump blood away from the heart
The cavity of the heart is
divided completely by a Right Left
partition called the atrium atrium
SEPTUM
The muscular walls of the
heart are referred to as the
myometrium and consist of
specialised cardiac muscle Right Left
cells ventricle ventricle
The thicker walled structure of the left
ventricle is a consequence of the distance Septum
over which it is required to pump blood
 The direction of blood flow through the heart is maintained by valves
Between the right atrium and
the right ventricle is the
TRICUSPID VALVE
This valve prevents the backflow Aorta
of blood from the right ventricle
to the right atrium
Between the left atrium and Pulmonary
the left ventricle is the Artery
BICSUPID VALVE OR
MITRAL VALVE
This valve prevents the
backflow of blood from Right Left
the left ventricle to atrium atrium
the left atrium
The bicuspid and tricuspid Tricuspid Semilunar Bicuspid
valves are collectively valve valves or Mitral
known as the valve
ATRIO-VENTRICULAR
VALVES or AV valves Right Left
Pocket-shapes valves known ventricle ventricle
as SEMILUNAR VALVES are
located at the base of the arteries
responsible for transporting
blood away from the heart
BLOOD
FLOW
REGULATION
OF THE
HEART
FUNCTION
 Venous return - amount of blood returns to the heart
Preload - is the degree to which the ventricular walls
are stretched at the end of diastole.
Afterload - refers to the pressure against which the
ventricles must pump blood.
Cardiac Output - is volume of blood pumped by
either ventricle of the heart each minute.
Stroke Volume - is the volume of blood pumped per
ventricle each time the heart contracts.
Heart Rate- is the number of times the heart contract
each minute.

CO (ml/min) = SV (ml/beat) x HR (beat/min)

The control mechanisms that
modify the stroke volume
and the heart rate are
classified as INTRINSIC
and EXTRINSIC
MECHANISMS.
INTRINSIC REGULATION OF THE HEART
- Mechanism contained within the
heart itself.
- The force of contraction produced by
cardiac muscle is related to the
degree of stretch of the cardiac
muscle fibers.
- The amount of blood in the ventricles
at the end of ventricular diastole
determines to which the cardiac
muscle are stretched.
 Increase Venous Return
(the heart fills greater volume and stretches the cardiac muscle fibers

Produce INCREASE PRELOAD

In response CARDIAC MUSCLE FIBERS CONTRACT WITH

A GREATER FORCE

Causes an INCREASED VOLUME OF BLOOD EJECTED

Result in INCREASED STROKE VOLUME

The relationship between the preload and stroke volume is

called STARLING’S LAW OF THE HEART.
STARLINGS LAW OF THE HEART

The more that the

cardiac muscle is
stretched, the stronger
the contraction
EXTRINSIC REGULATION OF THE HEART

Refers to mechanisms
external to the heart,
such as either hormonal
or nervous regulation.
BARORECEPTOR AND CHEMORECEPTOR REFLEXES
B
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RENIN –
ANGIOTENSIN –
ALDOSTERONE
MECHANISM
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 CONTROL
OF
BLOOD
PRESSURE
LONG-
TERM
(SLOW-
ACTING
MECHANISM)