An Overview of the Heart

Oxygen. It is the breath of life that we depend on. Without it we are dead. If it is not collected and distributed throughout the body, we become no more. There is one powerful organ responsible for the distribution of this life giving substance and its the heart. It is a complex and unique organ and in this overview we will take a look at its most basic parts and their functions.

A cursory study of the heart reveals the four major divisions of the heart; the left and right atria
(plural for atrium) and the left and right ventricles. These four heart valve control the division of the blood in order to ensure that oxygen rich blood is not mixed with the deficient type and that they reach their respective destinations.

In one heart beat, oxygen deficient blood is brought into the the right atrium through the inferior and superior vena cava from all over the body. The vena cava is the largest vein in the body. It can reach the diameter of a garden hose. The blood then enters the right ventricle were it is directed into the pulmonary veins to the lungs were it is oxygenated. Then it's brought back into the heart via the pulmonary arteries and into the left atrium. Through the left ventricle and out of the aorta(the largest artery of the body) to the rest of the body;all in each double heart beat. Pretty amazing don't you think?

Even more amazing is how the unborn fetus has a special feature in their heart called the foramen ovale. It is essentially a hole in the area between the left and right atria. It allows the blood entering from the vena cava to directly bypass the right ventricle and therefore the pulmonary veins and collapsed lungs and move straight to the left side of the heart and the body. Because fetal blood is oxygenated by the mother's placenta, there is no need for it to be sent to the lungs which are, until birth, non functional.

Because the left side of the heart is responsible for pumping blood to the whole body as apposed to the right side only pumping to the nearby lungs, the left heart, as it is sometimes called, is fairly larger and more powerful than the right.

The heart is about 3/4 the size of an individual's closed fist and its pointed left end located just beyond the breastbone, called the apex, is were doctors place the stethoscope when listening to your heart beat.

The heart is composed of a unique muscle found no were else in the body called cardiac muscle and once damaged it cannot be replaced.

Seeing just how powerful, irreplaceable and complex the heart really is, I would think twice before doing anything that would put it in harms way wouldn't you?

With this new insight into the miraculous workings of the heart(and this is not half of the wonder of this indispensable organ), don't you appreciate it even more?