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Lecture

Heart Anatomy: External Morphology

In course

BIO-320: Morphology I

Ce cours est une préparation intensive à l'examen d'entrée en 3ème année de Médecine. Les matières enseignées sont la morphologie macroscopique (anatomie), microscopique (histologie) du corps humain. La matière est présentée dans une perspective médicale s ...

Description

This lecture covers the external morphology of the heart, including the atria, ventricles, coronary sulcus, and interventricular sulci. It explains how internal partitions divide the heart into four chambers and the significance of recognizing the two auricles.

Instructor

Romain Zufferey

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Health sciences

Cardiology: Cardiovascular disease

Related concepts (32)

Coronary circulation

Coronary circulation is the circulation of blood in the arteries and veins that supply the heart muscle (myocardium). Coronary arteries supply oxygenated blood to the heart muscle. Cardiac veins then drain away the blood after it has been deoxygenated. Because the rest of the body, and most especially the brain, needs a steady supply of oxygenated blood that is free of all but the slightest interruptions, the heart is required to function continuously.

Coronary arteries

The coronary arteries are the arterial blood vessels of coronary circulation, which transport oxygenated blood to the heart muscle. The heart requires a continuous supply of oxygen to function and survive, much like any other tissue or organ of the body. The coronary arteries wrap around the entire heart. The two main branches are the left coronary artery and right coronary artery. The arteries can additionally be categorized based on the area of the heart for which they provide circulation.

Heart

The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide to the lungs. In humans, the heart is approximately the size of a closed fist and is located between the lungs, in the middle compartment of the chest, called the mediastinum. In humans, other mammals, and birds, the heart is divided into four chambers: upper left and right atria and lower left and right ventricles.

Ventricle (heart)

A ventricle is one of two large chambers toward the bottom of the heart that collect and expel blood towards the peripheral beds within the body and lungs. The blood pumped by a ventricle is supplied by an atrium, an adjacent chamber in the upper heart that is smaller than a ventricle. Interventricular means between the ventricles (for example the interventricular septum), while intraventricular means within one ventricle (for example an intraventricular block).

Middle cardiac vein

The middle cardiac vein commences at the apex of the heart. It passes posteriorly along the inferior interventricular sulcus to end at the coronary sinus near the sinus' termination. The middle cardiac vein commences at the cardiac apex (here, it is contiguous with the great cardiac vein, thus forming - along with the coronary sinus - a complete venous circle). The middle cardiac vein has a constant location on the surface of the ventricles. The middle cardiac vein is useful for epicardial access to the inferior side of the ventricles.

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