Heart Dissection Lab Questions

1. The purpose of the pericardium is that it secretes a fluid that helps lubricate the heart therefore reducing friction.

2. Arteries differ from veins in that veins have thinner walls than arteries because arteries need thicker walls in order to deliver blood to the entire body.

3. The function that the auricle serves is that is increases the capacity of the atrium, which allows the blood it can hold to increase.

4. The auricle, which is an extension of the atrium, is visible on the outside of the heart while the ventricles are not visible until an individual looks inside the heart. Both the left atrium and ventricle has more muscle surrounding it than the right side because it requires more power to pump the blood throughout the entire body. While the right atria receives oxygenated blood, the right ventricle discharges the blood. On the other hand, the left atria receives oxygen rich blood, and the ventricle discharges the blood.

6.  When you cut into cross sections, an individual is able to see the biscuspid valve.

7. The importance of "anchoring" the heart valves by the chordae tendinae and the papillary muscles is that it prevents the back flow of blood within the heart. Both the chordae tendinae and the papillary muscles contract to close the valves and with out either being attached, the valves would not be able to close.

8.  We are seeing inside of the left atrium and then the bicuspid valve, which is held to the walls by the chordinae tendinae and the papillary muscles.

9. The function of the semilunar valves is that it prevents arterial blood from re-entering the heart. It has two different types: the pulmonary semilunar valve and the aortic semilunar valve.

10.
a. There would be swelling in the feet and ankles because the blood that comes from the body enters through the superior and inferior vena cava, and since there is a regurgitation of the blood within the heart, the blood then leaks back into the body and causes swelling.

b. If the problem occurred in the left side, there would be serious complications due to the fact that the individual does not have sufficient oxygen in their blood.

11. We found an opening in the left ventricle, and it was mostly obscured from our view however it has a similar structure to the tricuspid.

12. In the heart, the left and right side differ in that the left side has more muscle because it requires a greater strength to pump the blood to the entire body. While on the right side, it only pumps blood to the lungs making it significantly smaller than the left side of the heart.

13.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfhTsnHHMEA

Unit 3 Reflection

In this unit, we learned about the heart, its functions, and the respiratory system. In the cardiovascular system, it begins in the heart which has many different components: the pericardium, which secretes a fluid to lubricate the heart; the four chambers of the heart, the right and left atria and ventricles; and the valves, the tricuspid, bicuspid, and the semilunar which prevent backflow in the heart. The heart first has a atrial systole, where the atria's contract and forces blood from the atria to the ventricles, then to the ventricular systole, where the ventricles contract and the blood is pumped away from the heart, and lastly the relaxation, where the ventricles relax and the SV valves close until the ventricular pressure is lowered below atrial pressure and then they reopen.

In order to maintain good cardiovascular health, an individual needs to maintain a healthy weight and diet, exercise on a regular basis, controlling inflammation, and controlling blood pressure and cholesterol. Without following a healthy lifestyle, a individual's heart can suffer several consequences such as atherosclerosis, which are fatty deposits in the blood vessels causing the vessels to become obstructed; and aneurysms, which are weakened sections of the blood vessel walls that can burst. Heart attacks, disease, and strokes can also occur with an unhealthy heart. A heart attack is caused by blood supply to the myocardium is reduced that can result to heart cells or death. Another problem would be a stroke, which is a brain injury that occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted. There are multiple types of strokes: ischemic stroke, where the artery that supplies the blood to the brain becomes blocked; and a hemorrhagic stroke, where an artery in the brain bursts.

In order to prevent heart attacks, heart disease, or strokes, and individual can: control their blood pressure, control cholesterol, eat a healthy diet, stop smoking, manage stress, and exercise. Living a healthier lifestyle can greatly reduce and individuals chance of heart attacks and strokes.
One unanswered question I have at the end of this unit is why even after having a heart attack, would an individual continue their unhealthy lifestyle and risk another heart attack? Also how would an individual who has a genetic history of heart disease or heart attacks learn to prevent a heart attack or disease?

Moving forward onto upcoming units, I will need to review more throughout the unit rather than waiting for the unit test. Going through the semester, my health goals are proving hard to maintain because as the semester is soon ending, there is a lot more stress and homework, making it hard to focus on my health goals. Even as hard as it is, I will try to get more sleep and stress as little as I can.

Sheep heart:                                                       Heart Diagram:    


Right ventricle