Posted by STEAM project
The objective I am covering is to know the path of blood through the heart and circulatory system and explain how the heart translates an electrical signal to a contraction. Understanding the blood flow through the circulatory system can help you have a comprehensive understanding of how your heart and circulatory system help deliver oxygen and nutrients to your organs and tissues. After delivering oxygen and nutrients to your organs and tissues your blood enters your heart and then continues to flow to your lungs to gain oxygen and get rid of waste. The blood then continues to flow back to your heart, which pumps the new, refreshed blood through your aorta to nourish your body again and the cycle continues. Arteries carry blood away from the heart and veins carry blood to the heart. There are two blood circulatory systems in our bodies that are connected. Systemic circulation provides blood to our organs, tissues and cells so they are able to get the necessary nutrients and oxygen. The pulmonary circulatory system is when carbon dioxide exits the blood while oxygen enters the blood, (How Does the Blood Circulatory System Work?, 2023).
It’s important to understand the anatomy of the heart so you can understand the blood flow through the heart. “The heart has four chambers. Remember that the right side of the heart deals with deoxygenated blood, while the left side handles oxygenated blood,” (Helmenstine, 2024). The blood in the heart first goes through the right atrium receiving deoxygenated blood through the superior and inferior venae cavae, (Helmenstine, 2024). Then the blood goes towards the right ventricle which pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs specifically for oxygenation by way of the pulmonary artery, (Helmenstine, 2024). The left atrium then receives blood with oxygen coming from the pulmonary veins, (Helmenstine, 2024). Finally, the left ventricle pumps blood with the oxygen through the main trunk of the heart (the aorta) to the systemic circulatory system which supplies other major organs and tissues with oxygenated blood, (Helmenstine, 2024). This is a constant cycle that continues through your body with every heart beat you produce.
How does such a tough, powerful, organ like the heart produce a beat though? According to Johns Hopkins, “An electrical stimulus is generated by the sinus node. The sinus node generates an electrical stimulus regularly, 60 to 100 times per minute under normal conditions. The atria are then activated. The electrical stimulus travels down through the conduction pathways and causes the hearts ventricles to contract and pump out blood,” (John Hopkins Medicine, 2025). One of the many causes of an irregular heartbeat can be myocardial infarction. A myocardial infarction occurs when your heart begins to die from not getting enough blood. If an artery is blocked that normally supplies blood to your heart this can cause a heart attack. “The definitive mode of action for dealing with this condition is using a medical device known as a stent at the affected location. This extremely important tubular helps tremendously with vessel support,” (Sahu et al., 2023). Heart attacks are one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Thankfully with stents doctors can do incredible things and give people longer lives if the blockage is caught in time.
For my project I made a poster board with the definitions of the anatomy of the heart, the definition of their specific function, and what a myocardial infarction is. I also have a heart with tubes and syringes that show the blood flow through the heart and circulatory system. I have gone in depth on explaining what happens when someone has a myocardial infarction on the right side of my board. My tubes purposely are not full of liquid to demonstrate the lack of blood flow and how that can make parts of the heart die and cause a myocardial infarction, also known as a heart attack.
References:
Sahu, R. A., Nashine, A., Mudey, A., Sahu, S. A., & Prasad, R. (2023). Cardiovascular Stents: Types and Future Landscape. Cureus, 15(8), e43438. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.43438
Helmenstine, A. (2024, April 13). Path of Blood Through the Heart. Science Notes and Projects. https://sciencenotes.org/path-of-blood-through-the-heart/
How does the blood circulatory system work? (2023, November 21). Informedhealth.org. https://www.informedhealth.org/how-does-the-blood-circulatory-system-work.html
John Hopkins Medicine. (2025). Anatomy and Function of the Heart’s Electrical System. Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/anatomy-and-function-of-the-hearts-electrical-system
Nikki describes the path of the blood through the systemic and pulmonary cardiovascular systems and explains how the heart translates electrical signals into contractions. The art piece describes the anatomy and functions of the heart, and creatively shows the path of blood through the heart through the use of fluid-filled syringes and tubes.
The superior and inferior venae cavae carry blood returning from the systemic circulation path that supplies organs and tissues with oxygen and nutrients. It enters the first of the heart’s four chambers on the right side, the right atrium. The second chamber is the right ventricle, that pumps the blood to the lungs in the pulmonary circulatory system through the pulmonary artery. At the lungs, the blood receives oxygen while waste such as carbon dioxide is released. The third chamber of the heart is the left atrium, which receives the oxygenated blood through the pulmonary veins. The fourth chamber, the left ventricle pumps the oxygenated blood through the main trunk of the heart – the aorta. The blood re-enters the systemic circulatory system and supplies organs and tissues with the newly oxygenated blood.
In order for the muscles of the heart to contract rhythmically, an electrical impulse is generated by the sinus node to activate the muscles of the atria. The signal travels through the heart by way of conduction pathways to the ventricles and causes them to contract. Myocardial infarction is a condition in which the heart begins to die from lack of adequate blood flow, also known as a ‘heart attack’. The definitive treatment for a myocardial infarction is the use of a medical stent that supports the vessel to return adequate blood flow to the heart.