Cardiac definitions

Aorta

The heart's main artery

Pulmonary veins

The pulmonary arteries drain the oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium

Septum

A partition separating the chambers in the heart

Inferior vena cava

The inferior vena cava is also referred to as the posterior vena cava. The inferior vena cava is a large vein that carries de-oxygenated blood from the lower body to the heart. The inferior vena cava empties into the right atrium of the heart. The right atrium is located on the lower right back side of the heart. The inferior vena cava runs posterior, or behind, the abdominal cavity. This vein also runs alongside the right vertebral column of the spine. The inferior vena cava is the result of two major leg veins coming together. These leg veins are called iliac veins. The iliac veins come together at the small of the back, at the fifth lumbar vertebra. Once the iliac veins have merged, the inferior vena cava begins to transport blood to the heart.

Left atrium

The left atrium receives blood from the pulmonary veins as it returns to the heart to complete a circulatory cycle

Mitral valve

Valve that closes the orifice between the left atrium and the left ventricle

Left ventricle

Receives blood from the left atrium and them pumps it to the circulatory system via the aorta

Aortic valve

The main artery that supply's the oxygenated blood to the circulatory system. In humans it arches over the heart from the left ventricle and runs down in front of the spine

Pulmonary artery

The pulmonary artery carries blood from the veins to the right ventricle of the heart and then to the lungs

Pulmonary valve

The pulmonic valve is one of two valves that allow blood to leave the heart via the arteries. It is a one-way valve, meaning that blood cannot flow back into the heart through it.

Right atrium

The right atrium is one of the four chambers of the heart. The heart is comprised of two atria and two ventricles. Blood enters the heart through the two atria and exits through the two ventricles. Deoxygenated blood enters the right atrium through the inferior and superior vena cava. The right side of the heart then pumps this deoxygenated blood into the pulmonary veins around the lungs.

Right ventricle

The right ventricle is the chamber within the heart that is responsible for pumping oxygen-depleted blood to the lungs.

Superior vena cava

The superior vena cava (SVC) is the superior of the two venae cavae, the great venous trunks that return deoxygenated blood from the systemic circulation to the right atrium of the heart. It is a large-diameter (24 mm), yet short, vein that receives venous return from the upper half of the body, above the diaphragm.

Tricuspid valve

The tricuspid valve forms the boundary between the right ventricle and the right atrium. Deoxygenated blood enters the right side of the heart via the inferior and superior vena cava. These are large veins that transport deoxygenated blood from the body back to the heart. Blood collects within the right atrium, and it must flow through the tricuspid valve in order to enter the right ventricle. Then, blood exits the heart via the pulmonary artery, which transmits blood to the lungs for oxygenation.