The Cardiovascular System

Objectives:

1. Describe the features of the circulatory and

lymphatic system

2. Describe the structure and function of the heart

and blood vessels of the body.

3. Explain the cardiac cycle and how blood pressure is

produced & maintained.
The Cardiovascular System
Divided into 2 systems:
Circulatory system – consisting of the heart,

blood vessels and blood

Lymphatic System – consisting of lymph

nodes, lymph vessels and lymph fluid

 The Circulatory System

LUNGS

Pulmonary
circulation

HEART
Systemic
circulation

BODY
The cardiovascular system consists of the blood, the heart,
and blood vessels.
Blood must be constantly pumped through the body’s
blood vessels so that it can reach body cells and exchange
materials with them.
 To accomplish this, the heart beats about 100,000 times
every day, which adds up to 35 million beats in a year and
about 2.5 billion times in an average lifetime.
The Heart
Muscular organ that lies in the thoracic cavity
Acts as a pump to circulate blood round the body
Composed of 3 layers of tissue:
Pericardium the sac the heart ‘lies’ in
Myocardium specialized muscle that ‘beats’
Endocardium the inner lining of the heart
Compared to its function , the heart is relatively

small.
It is the size of a closed fist.

It is about 12 cm long, 9 cm wide at its broadest

point, and 6 cm thick.
It has an average mass of 250 g in adult females
and 300 g in adult males.
The heart rests on the diaphragm, near the midline of the
thoracic cavity.
It lies in the mediastinum an anatomical region

that extends from the sternum to the vertebral column, the

first rib to the diaphragm, and between the lungs.
About two-thirds of the mass of the heart lies to the left
of the body’s midline.
ANATOMICAL POSITION OF THE
HEART
The pointed apex is formed by the tip of the left
ventricle (a lower chamber of the heart) and rests on
the diaphragm.
 It is directed anteriorly , inferiorly, and to the left.

The base of the heart is its posterior surface. It is

formed by the atria (upper chambers) of the heart,
mostly the left atrium.
 The Circulatory System
The heart pumps blood into 2 anatomically separate
systems of blood vessels

1. The pulmonary circulation

2. The systemic circulation

There is a continuous flow of blood to all body cells

The system is under continual physiological adjustment in

order to maintain adequate blood supply
The Heart
1 Superior vena cava
2 Right atrium
3 Right Atrio-ventricular valve
(tricuspid)
4 Right ventricle
5 Papillary muscle
6 Aorta
7 Pulmonary artery
8 Left atrium
9 Left Atrio-ventricular valve
(bicuspid)
10 Intra-ventricular septum
Heart Anatomy
Anterior surface
right ventricle
septum
left ventricle
Pericardium
fibrous layer
serous layer
Heart wall comprises:
epicardium
myocardium (muscle)
endocardium
 Chambers
1. Right atrium:

Thin walled

Vessels entering superior and inferior vena

cava
Receives de-oxygenated blood
2. Right ventricle:
Thin walled as only required to pump to

lungs
Receives de-oxygenated blood from right

atrium via tricuspid valve

Pumps de-oxygenated blood to pulmonary

artery via pulmonary valve

3. Left atrium:
Thin walled chamber but thicker than right

atrium
Receives oxygenated blood from lungs via

pulmonary veins
Pumps blood into left ventricle via mitral valve
4. Left ventricle:
Thick walled chamber

Largest chamber

Thick muscle required to pump blood via

aortic valve into aorta and systemic circulation

 Valves.
Tricuspid:
Between right atrium and right ventricle
Pulmonary:
Between right ventricle and pulmonary artery
Mitral:
Between left atrium and left ventricle
Aortic:
Between left ventricle and aorta
Blood flow through the heart
Inferior and superior vena cavae empty into the right atrium

Blood passes through the atrio-ventricular valve into the right ventricle

Blood is pumped into the pulmonary artery through the pulmonary valve

The blood is taken to the lungs to become oxygenated

Blood returns to the heart via the pulmonary veins into the left atrium

Pumped through left atrio-ventricular valve into the left ventricle

Blood leaves the heart through the aortic valve into the aorta to be transported to
the rest of the body
 Conducting System of the heart
The basic properties of cardiac muscle is:
 Excitability(bathmotropism)- Able to respond to stimuli
 Contractility(inotropism)- Ability to actively generate
force , shortening and thickening when stimuli is applied
 Autorythmicity- Spontaeous starting of conduction
sysytem
 Conductivity- Able to transmit stimuli throughout the
heart
 Cardiac Cycle
Lasts approximately 0.8 seconds – 4 phases:

1. Ventricular filling

Ventricular diastole 0.5 seconds. Initially filling

rapid – due to ventricular recoil  sucks blood into
ventricle.

As ventricle fills – rate of flow  ventricular pressure

begins to rise
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2.Ventricular systole
As ventricular pressure rises to greater than atrial
pressure the atrial ventricular valves close.
Ventricle now closed chamber
Ventricular wall ventricle increases
Pressure in the ventricle rises

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When ventricular pressure exceeds arterial pressure,
outflow valves open
Three quarters of S.V. is ejected in the first half of
ejection phase
At first blood ejected faster than it can flow into
arterial tree therefore aorta distends

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Ventricles relax
Ventricular pressure falls to below arterial pressure
Back flow closes valves
Arterial pressure falls as blood runs into peripheral
arteries

Ventricles eject 70 mls of blood every contraction .

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 3. Ventricular relaxation.
With closure of aortic and pulmonary valves –
ventricles become closed chamber
Ventricular pressure falls rapidly due to elastic
recoil of muscle
When ventricular pressure falls below atrial
pressure – the a.v. valves open blood flows in
from atria

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Heart rates
Normal
60 – 100 beats a minute

Bradycardia
Below 60 beats a minute

Tachycardia
Above 100 beats a minute
CAROTID
RADIAL

BRACHIAL

FEMORAL

POPLITEAL

DORSALIS
PEDIS
Blood Vessels
Blood vessels vary in structure, size & function

HEART

Veins Arteries

Venules Arterioles

Capillaries
 Arteries & Arterioles
Transport blood away from the heart

Amount of smooth muscle and elastic tissue varies

depending on size of the artery
The walls stretch absorbing the pressure wave from
the heart as it beats
Systemic blood pressure is determined by the
resistance these vessels cause to blood flow
Have 3 layers:

Tunica adventitia – outer layer, fibrous tissue

Tunica media – middle layer, smooth muscle & elastic

tissue
Tunica intima – inner layer, endothelial tissue
 Veins and Venules
Return blood to the heart

Have the same 3 walls as arteries but they are thinner &

less muscle in the tunica media

Some veins have valves to prevent backflow of blood

At any time 2/3 of the body’s blood is in the venous

system, allowing the vascular system to cope with sudden

changes in blood volume
•Tunica adventitia – outer layer, fibrous tissue

•Tunica media – middle layer, smooth muscle & elastic

tissue
•Tunica intima – inner layer, endothelial tissue
 Control of blood vessels
Nerves of the autonomic nervous system control the

diameter of the lumen of blood vessels

The volume of blood flowing through can therefore be

changed
The degree of vasoconstriction (getting smaller) or

vasodilatation (getting larger) of the lumen is important in

control of systemic blood pressure
Functions of the cardiovascular system
Transport

Respiration – blood transports oxygen to and carbon

dioxide from cells

Nutritive – blood carries nutrients absorbed through

the intestinal walls to tissues of the body

Excretory – blood carries metabolic wastes and

excess water away from cells to be excreted

Protection

White blood cells destroy microorganisms

and produce antibodies

Toxic substances are carried to the liver to

be processed and excreted

Clotting seals off blood vessels to prevent

blood loss
Regulation

Blood carries hormones and other regulatory

molecules from their site of origin to target organs and

tissues
Temperature sensors in the brain cause an increase or

decrease in blood flow to the skin which regulates

body temperature
Maintains pH of body fluids by detecting carbon

dioxide and buffers in the blood.

 Fetal Circulation
Fetal circulation is adapted to the fact that the

fetal lungs are nonfunctional and oxygen and

nutrients are obtained from the placenta.
The umbilical cord connects the placenta to the

fetal umbilicus. It has one vein and 2 arteries.

Oxygenated, nutrient-rich blood flows through the

umbilical vein toward the liver. The vein bifurcates. One

branch joins the portal vein and the other branch, called
the ductus venosus, enters the inferior vena cava.
The vena cava empties into the right atrium and is

directed through the foramen ovale, an opening through

the atria, to the left atrium. Blood flows into the left
ventricle, aorta, and the body of the fetus.
Some blood in the right atrium flows into the right

ventricle and out of the heart to the pulmonary circulation

but most of the blood in the pulmonary trunk flows
through the ductus arteriosus into the aorta.
Blood returns to the placenta by the umbilical arteries.

Metabolic wastes are exchanged in the capillaries of the

placenta and the mother will process and excrete them.
After birth, the ductus venosus contracts and blocks the passage of

blood through it within hours.

When breathing begins, the lungs expand and blood vessels in the

lungs dilate. Increased blood flow to the lungs causes left atrial
pressure to exceed right atrial pressure. This pressure keeps a flap
of tissue on the left side of the interatrial septum covering the
foramen ovale where it will fuse over the next few months.
High aortic pressure pushes blood toward the pulmonary trunk

instead of through the ductus arteriosus. It will atrophy after a few

days.
 Blood Pressure
Blood pressure is the force that the blood exerts on

the walls of the blood vessels in the body.

Blood pressure is needed to ensure that blood

travels round the body taking oxygen and nutrients

to all the tissues
Blood pressure that is too high or too low can have

serious effects on the body

Too high = blood vessel damage, rupture, clot

formation
Too low = inadequate blood flow to tissues/organs

can result in damage especially heart, brain,

kidneys
BP is determined by 5 factors:
 Cardiac output

 Peripheral vascular resistance

 Volume of circulating blood

 Viscosity of blood

 Elasticity of vessel walls

BP - Normal Variants
BP varies with:

Age Exercise
Sex Stress
Race Emotions
Weight
 Measuring Blood Pressure
When the heart contracts, the left ventricle forces blood

out into the already full aorta. The aorta expands to

accommodate the blood, the walls then push back at a
pressure of approximately 120mmHg
Measured as the SYSTOLIC pressure

When the heart relaxes, the pressure falls to approx

80mmHg because there is no blood being forced against

them
Measured as the DIASTOLIC pressure
 Control of Blood Pressure
Blood pressure can vary depending on the time of day and the

position the body is in, it also differs with age and gender
Some diseases can cause an alteration in blood pressure

Blood pressure is controlled by the body in two ways:

Short-term control – baroreceptor reflex, chemoreceptors & the

brain
Long-term control – regulation of blood volume by the kidneys,

the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system

Drugs may also be used to alter blood pressure
 The ECG (Electrocardiogram)
As action potentials propagate through the heart , they
generate electrical currents that can be detected at the
surface of the body.
An Electrocardiogram (ECG) records the electrical

activity of the myocardium (heart muscle)

The electrodes pick up the electrical activity which the

ECG machine then converts into the graph we can see

The ECG records electrical activity generated

by the heart
Where there is no electrical activity a straight

line is seen this is called the “isoelectric line” or

“baseline”

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 What can the ECG tell us?
If the heart is functioning properly (normal rhythm or an

arrhythmia)
If the heart is beating too fast or too slow (tachycardia &

bradycardia)
If there has been damage caused by a myocardial

infarction (heart attack)

If there are problems such as a heart block or dysrhythmia