The Heart
The heart is a muscle that is located near the center of the chest
in a space called the thoracic cavity. An adult heart is about the size of
an adult person's fist. It beats, on average, 60-80 times a minute in
order to pump blood throughout the body.
Chambers of the Heart:
The heart is divided into a left and right side.
The right side of the heart receives blood from the body and pumps it into the lungs where
the blood can be filled with oxygen. The left side of the heart receives the oxygenated blood and
then pumps it to the rest
of
the body.
The heart is divided on
each
side. These areas of the
heart are called chambers,
known as either an atrium
or
ventricle. There are two
atria and two ventricles,
one
on each side.
Circulation:
The right atrium
receives blood from blood vessels called the inferior (lower) vena cava and superior (upper)
vena cava which then flows to the right ventricle which pumps the blood to the lungs. The left
atrium receives the blood from a blood vessel called the pulmonary vein. The blood (which is
now rich in oxygen from the lungs) flows into the left ventricle. The left ventricle pumps the
blood out to the entire body through a blood vessel called the aorta.
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