In 2008, an “estimated 17.3 million people die from CVDs, representing 30% of all global deaths” (Cardiovascular, 2014). CVDs or cardiovascular disease is the main leading cause of death on a global level. Cardiac disease incorporates conditions such as heart attack, ischemic stroke, heart failure, arrhythmia, heart valve problems, congenital heart disease, pericardial disease and aorta disease or Marfan Syndrome, just to name …show more content…
The heart is an organ that is relatively the size of a fist and is the primary organ of providing circulation of the blood to the veins and arteries in the human body. The heart consists of four chambers, the right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, and left ventricle. Arteries provide the body with oxygenated blood, while the veins circulate the blood to the heart to gain …show more content…
After the blood leaves the lungs, it goes into the left atrium where it is then passed into the left ventricle to be pumped to the rest of the body. The left ventricle is the largest of the four chambers and is the source of our blood pressure due to the forceful contractions of the chamber. To allow passage of blood between the atrium and ventricles of the heart lie valves. These valves are located between the atrium and ventricles and act as the passageway of the blood. The tricuspid valve rests between the right atrium and ventricle and the pulmonary valve transports the non-oxygenated blood in the pulmonary arteries to the lungs. The mitral valve allows blood to flow to the left ventricle from the left atrium, and the aortic valve allows passage of blood flow from the left ventricle to the aorta.
In the picture above, the atriums and chambers are identified, with the blue coloring representing non-oxygenated blood flow into the heart. The picture to the right () dictates the location of the heart in the human body along with the veins (blue coloradion) and arteries (red coloring) throughout the human