According to the Heart Information Center at the Texas Heart Institute, the heart weighs between 7 to 15 ounces and a little larger than the size of your fist. It is known to be one the hardest working muscle in the human body. The size of your heart can vary depending on an individual's age, size and the condition of their heart. Located in the thoracic cavity- between your lungs and the middle of your chest, the heart contains four chambers. The upper chambers are called the right and left atria and the lower chambers are known as the right and left ventricles. The heart is known to beat around 100,00 times per day and 2,000 gallons of blood (National Institute of Health,2016). There are four valves that regulate blood flow through the heart and are the tricuspid valve, pulmonary valve, mitral valve and the aortic valve. The heart wall is made of 3 layers: epicardium, myocardium and endocardium. The epicardium is the outermost layer that helps to lubricate and protect the outside of the heart. The myocardium is the muscular middle layer of the heart wall and is responsible for pumping blood. And the endocardium is responsible for keeping blood from sticking to the inside of the heart and forming potential deadly blood clots. The heart contains two states at which the heart can be found in- systole and diastole. During systole, cardiac muscle is contracted and pushes blood out of the chamber. And during diastole, cardiac muscle cells relax and allow chambers to be filled with blood (National Institute of Health, 2016). The cardiac cycle includes events that occur during one heartbeat. And, the three phases to this cycle are atrial systole, ventricular systole and relaxation. During atrial systole, the atria contract and push blood into the ventricles. During the ventricular systole, the ventricles contract to push blood into the aorta and pulmonary trunk. And lastly, during the relaxation phase, all 4 chambers of the heart are in diastole as blood enters the heart from the veins (Lewis, 2016) The pulmonary valve controls blood flow from the right ventricle into the pulmonary arteries which carry blood to your lungs. The aortic valve opens the route for oxygen-rich blood to pass from the left ventricle into the aorta. The mitral valve lets oxygen-rich blood from your lungs pass from the left atrium into the left ventricle. And lastly, the tricuspid valve regulates blood flow between the right atrium and right ventricle (National Institute of Health, 2016). Most cardiovascular diseases can cause the heart to enlarge. Certain conditions such as abnormal heart rhythms, coronary artery disease, heart failure, heart valve disease, congenital heart disease,pericarditis, and cardiomyopathies and other vascular diseases can all often compromise the function of the heart (Lewis 2016). When blood flow is restricted from going to different parts of the body, the heart cannot receive enough oxygenated blood and can cause many complications with the body’s metabolism.Most of the diseases mentioned above can often cause irreversible damage as the heart muscle slowly begins to die and if this damage is severe enough, the heart may be unable to pump enough blood through the body and cause the heart to fail (National Institute of Health, 2016). Works Cited 1. Human Heart Anatomy & Physiology. HHS, NIH, NHLBI. (2014, August 26). Retrieved October 17, 2016, from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/hearttruth/lower-risk/what-is-heart-disease.htm 2. T. Lewis (2016, March 22). Human Heart: Anatomy, Function & Facts - Live Science. Retrieved October 24, 2016, from http://www.livescience.com/34655-human-heart.html
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The National Institute of Health defines cardiovascular disease as a disorder of the blood vessels of the heart that can lead to a heart attack. This occurs when an artery becomes blocked, or do not receive adequate nutrients and oxygen. The most common type, coronary heart disease is one of the several cardiovascular diseases. Other diseases include Rheumatoid heart disease, angina, stroke and high blood pressure. This disease is an epidemic because although procedures such as percutaneous coronary intervention and bypass surgery can help route blood and oxygen flow to the heart, arteries still remain damaged, and blood vessels slowly worsen increasing an individual’s chance of getting heart attack. Currently, cardiovascular disease is the most leading cause of death and constitutes about 17% of overall national health expenditures (National Institute of Health, 2014).
Without change in lifestyle habits, many cardiovascular disease can eventually lead to death. Risk factors such as high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, smoking, age and etc can worsen disease. Most common types of cardiovascular disease are congestive heart failure- chronic condition in which the heart does not pump blood normally, cardiac arrest- sudden unexpected loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness- congenital heart disease- abnormality in the heart the develops before birth- peripheral artery disease- a circulatory condition in which narrowed blood vessels reduce blood flows to the limbs, coronary artery disease- damage or disease in the heart's major blood vessels (National Institute of Health, 2014). The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that in about one in four die from heart disease every year, making it the number one killer and the most preventable disease in the United States today. Even though we are still a long way from completely curing heart diseases, we know more about how to treat cardiovascular diseases. So compared to decades ago, a diagnosis of heart disease is not necessarily a death sentence anymore. And in 2014, the Scripps Research Institute reported a new biopsy that can predict the onset of a heart attack in high-risk individuals. In 2008, “to prepare for future cardiovascular care needs, the American Heart Association developed methodology to project future costs of care for hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, and all other CVD from 2010 to 2030. This methodology avoided double counting of costs for patients with multiple cardiovascular conditions. By 2030, 40.5% of the US population is projected to have some form of CVD. Between 2010 and 2030, real (2008$) total direct medical costs of CVD are projected to triple, from $273 billion to $818 billion. Real indirect costs (due to lost productivity) for all CVD are estimated to increase from $172 billion in 2010 to $276 billion in 2030, an increase of 61%” (Heidenreich 2011). These findings indicated that cardiovascular disease existence and costs are projected to increase. Despite all other preventative measures, it is important to know your family’s heart history which can help provide a picture and genetics in place when these heart diseases occurred. You can begin by taking life check assessments to learn more about any cardiovascular conditions in your family. Works Cited
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