Cardiovascular System and the Cardiologist

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Cardiovascular System and the Cardiologist What is the cardiovascular system? The cardiovascular system is composed of the heart, blood vessels, and approximately 5 liters of blood that various types of vessels transport. The heart is a muscular organ located medial of the lung along thoracic region of the body. The southernmost tip of the heart, known as the apex, is slightly turned to the left, as a result, two-thirds of the heart is located on the left side of the body, and one-third is located on the right. The largest blood vessels of the body is also located here, the aorta, vena cava, pulmonary trunk, and pulmonary veins. The heart, the muscle that pumps blood through the complex system of the vessels has four chambers that is enclosed by thick, muscular walls. The bottom portion of the heart is located a wall, called the interventricular septum separates the heart into two left and right chambers called the right and left ventricles. The upper half, is separated by a wall called the interatrial septum that divides the left and right atrium. These four chambers are separated from each by various valves. The tricuspid valve separates the right atrium and right ventricle and the mitral separates the left atrium and left ventricle. Two valves separate the ventricles and the large blood vessels. The aortic valves separates the left ventricle and the aorta and the pulmonic valve which separates the pulmonary artery and the right ventricle. The blood vessels are a intricate network of tubes that transport blood throughout the body. These vessels carry blood from the heart via the arteries ,then arterioles, then to capillaries or sinusoids, to venules, to veins and back to the heart. The final component to this structure is blood that delivers nutrients and removes wastes that are a by product of cellular processes that happen within the body. What is its

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