The second largest vein in the human body. This returns blood to the right atrium of the heart from the upper half of the body.superior vena cavaThe largest vein in the human body, the inferior vena cava returns blood to the right atrium of the heart from body parts below the diaphragm.inferior vena cavaExplain what happens to tissues, such as the heart, or the brain, if oxygenated blood is not delivered in a timely manner.If oxygen is not delivered to cells in a timely manner, necrosis, or cell injury and death, begins to occur. If enough tissues within an organ die, the organ will fail. If the heart or brain fails due to tissue death, the individual will die.A theme in biology is how structure is related to function. Discuss how the structures of the different chambers and vessels of the heart relate to their functions.The aorta is the largest blood vessel in the body and has many small branches that lead away from it. This allows the aorta to give the rest of the body access to the large volume of oxygen-rich blood it needs to survive. The walls of the aorta are also quite thick because it must withstand high forces from such large volumes of blood passing through it.
The left ventricle is the largest and most muscular chamber of the heart as it serves to pump oxygenated blood to the rest of the body through the aorta.In most of the body, the arteries carry oxygenated blood and the veins carry deoxygenated blood. The exception to this pattern is the heart. Explain how and why specific arteries and veins of the heart are different from the pattern seen in the rest of the body.The heart is an exception to this rule because the pulmonary veins carry oxygenated blood to the heart from the lungs, while the pulmonary arteries carry deoxygenated blood away from the heart to the lungs. A more consistent "rule" for arteries and veins would be as follows: "all arteries carry blood away from the heart, and all veins carry blood to the heart."Using what you have learned about the structure and function of the heart, explain why left ventricular hypertrophy can be fatal if left untreated.Hypertrophy is the enlargement or thickening of muscle tissue. If the walls of the left ventricle become thicker, high blood pressure can result, which can lead to potentially serious conditions, including congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction, aneurysm, and stroke.Explain how an otherwise young, healthy individual could have a serious heart condition.Many heart conditions can affect an otherwise young, healthy individual. For example, a person could be born with a congenital heart disease that is not outwardly apparent, or they could acquire a bacterial infection that could lead to damaged heart tissue.What are some lifestyle choices you could make and some risk factors you should avoid to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system?Maintaining a diet of heart-healthy foods and getting regular exercise can both have huge positive impacts on my cardiovascular health. To keep my heart healthy, I can also avoid smoking, doing drugs, or drinking alcohol.carries oxygenated blood to the bodyaortacarries deoxygenated blood from the upper extremities to the right atriumsuperior vena cavacarries deoxygenated blood to the lungspulmonary arterythis chamber receives deoxygenated blood from the bodyright atriumthis valve separates the right ventricle from the pulmonary arterypulmonary valvevalve that separates right atrium from right ventricletricuspidthis chamber pumps deoxygenated blood from the bodyright ventriclethese vessels carry freshly oxygenated blood back to the heart into the lest atriumpulmonary veinthe chamber receives oxygenated blood from the lungsleft atriumthe value separates the left atrium from the left ventriclebicuspid or mitral valvethe valve separating the left ventricle from the aortaaortic valvethis chamber receives oxygenated blood from lower extremities to the right atriumleft ventriclethe wall that separates the two ventricles of the heartseptumcarries deoxygenated blood from the lower extremities to the right atriuminferior vena cavawhere does the inferior vena cava collect blood from?everything lower than the diaphragmcongestive heart failuremyocardial infarctionventricular septal defectsubacute bacterial endocarditis
