Function of Heart

Anatomy of the Heart

The heart is a muscular organ located in the chest, just behind and slightly left of the breastbone.
It is about the size of your fist. It is a double-pump organ with four chambers: the left atrium, left ventricle, right atrium, and right ventricle.
The coronary arteries run along the surface of the heart and provide oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle.
A web of nerve tissue also runs through the heart, conducting the complex signals that govern contraction and relaxation.
The heart is both an endocrine organ and a muscle, producing hormones related to blood pressure control and water-electrolyte balance.

Functions of the Heart

The primary function of the heart is to pump blood throughout the body.
This is essential because it delivers oxygen and nutrients to the body’s cells and removes waste products.
It does this by contracting and relaxing. This process is often referred to as the cardiac cycle.
The heart contracts to pump blood out and then relaxes as it refills with incoming blood. The right side of the heart pumps the blood to your lungs, where it picks up oxygen. The left side of the heart receives the oxygen-rich blood from the lungs and pumps it to the body.
The heart’s other critical role is its contribution to maintaining homeostasis, specifically by participating in adjusting blood pressure and volume.

Cardiac Cycle

The cardiac cycle refers to a complete heartbeat which consists of diastole (relaxation) and systole (contraction) of both atria and ventricles.
During the cycle, pressure built-up helps pump blood through the arteries to various parts of the body.
The electrical impulses that initiate the cardiac cycle originate from the sinus node, a group of cells found in the right atrium.
Triggers here set the pace for the heart rate and coordinate the contractions of the heart chambers.

Remember, the heart is a crucial organ that supplies the body with everything it needs to survive - including oxygen, nutrients, and a way of flushing out wastes. Thus, understanding its functions is critical to understanding the cardiovascular system in health and disease.