Lesson 4.3 Blood Flow – Key Terms

Aorta / The large arterial trunk that carries blood from the heart to be distributed by branch arteries through the body.
Arteriole / Any of the small terminal twigs of an artery that ends in capillaries
Artery / Any of the tubular branching muscular- and elastic-walled vessels that carry blood from the heart through the body.
Arteriosclerosis / A chronic disease characterized by abnormal thickening and hardening of the arterial walls with resulting loss of elasticity
Atherosclerosis / A cardiovascular disease in which growths called plaques develop on the inner walls of the arteries, narrowing their inner diameters.
Atrium / A chamber of the heart that receives blood from the veins and forces it into a ventricle or ventricles.
Blood pressure / The hydrostatic force that blood exerts against the wall of a vessel.
Capillary / Any of the smallest blood vessels connecting arterioles with venules and forming networks throughout the body.
Cardiac muscle / Striated muscle fibers (cells) that form the wall of the heart; stimulated by the intrinsic conduction system and autonomic motor neurons
Cardiac output / The volume of blood ejected from the left side of the heart in one minute.
Circulation / The movement of blood through the vessels of the body that is induced by the pumping action of the heart and serves to distribute nutrients and oxygen to and remove waste products from all parts of the body.
Coronary Artery / Either of two arteries that arise one from the left and one from the right side of the aorta immediately above the semilunar valves and supply the tissues of the heart itself
Heart rate / A measure of cardiac activity usually expressed as number of beats per minute
Peripheral artery disease / A form of peripheral vascular disease in which there is partial or total blockage of an artery, usually one leading to a leg or arm.
Peripheral vascular disease / Vascular disease affecting blood vessels outside of the heart and especially those vessels supplying the extremities.
Pulmonary Circulation / The passage of venous blood from the right atrium of the heart through the right ventricle and pulmonary arteries to the lungs where it is oxygenated and its return via the pulmonary veins to enter the left atrium and participate in the systemic circulation
Pulse / A regularly recurrent wave of distension in arteries that results from the progress through an artery of blood injected into the arterial system at each contraction of the ventricles of the heart.
Smooth muscle / A tissue specialized for contraction, composed of smooth muscle fibers (cells), located in the walls of hollow internal organs, and innervated by the autonomic motor neurons
Stroke volume / The volume of blood pumped from a ventricle of the heart in one beat
Systemic Circulation / The passage of arterial blood from the left atrium of the heart through the left ventricle, the systemic arteries, and the capillaries to the organs and tissues that receive much of its oxygen in exchange for carbon dioxide and the return of the carbon-dioxide carrying blood via the systemic veins to enter the right atrium of the heart and to participate in the pulmonary circulation
Valve / A bodily structure (as the mitral valve) that closes temporarily a passage or orifice or permits movement of fluid in one direction only.
Varicose vein / An abnormal swelling of a superficial vein of the legs.
Vein / Any of the tubular branching vessels that carry blood from the capillaries toward the heart and have thinner walls than the arteries and often valves at intervals to prevent reflux of the blood which flows in a steady stream and is in most cases dark-colored due to the presence of reduced hemoglobin.
Ventricle / A chamber of the heart which receives blood from a corresponding atrium and from which blood is forced into the arteries.
Venule / Any of the minute veins connecting the capillaries with the larger systemic veins

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Human Body Systems Lesson 4.3 Blood Flow – Key Terms – Page 1