Different Types of Cardiac Arrhythmias - Essay Example

"Different Types of Cardiac Arrhythmias" is a wonderful example of a paper on the cardiovascular system.
A red blood cell in the superior vena cava which is usually deoxygenated is pushed into the right atrium of the heart. Right atrium upon contraction pushes this red blood cell further into the right ventricle which is the larger chamber of the right side of the heart. Further movement of this red blood cell is into the pulmonary artery which takes it to the lungs for oxygenation. After oxygenation, the red blood cell is returned to the left atrium through the pulmonary artery and moves to the left ventricle through the left atrium. The left ventricle upon contraction pumps the blood cell into the aorta.

Different Types of Cardiac Arrhythmias

The main types of cardiac arrhythmias are Supraventricular, ventricular, and bradyarrhythmias. Supraventricular arrhythmias usually involve the upper part of the heart, i.e. atria. They are further divided into premature atrial contraction, i.e. extra atrial beat, atrial flutter i.e. rapid and regular contraction of atria due to single circuit of impulse, atrial fibrillation, i.e. irregular atrial contraction. Ventricular arrhythmias are divided into premature ventricular contraction i.e. extra ventricular contraction before the original contraction, ventricular tachycardia i.e. rapid ventricular contractions which are usually regular but do not allow the ventricles to fill completely and ventricular fibrillation i.e. the most serious condition caused due to rapid irregular contractions of the ventricles. Bradyarrhythmias are slow and asynchronous heartbeats usually due to blockade of impulses.

Gaseous Exchange

Deoxygenated blood is carried to the lungs by the pulmonary arteries. This deoxygenated blood when enters the respiratory system is carried to the small alveoli of the lungs in minute capillaries. Oxygen is transported from the area of high concentration i.e. the alveoli to the area of low concentration i.e. blood cells. This exchange occurs through a process of simple diffusion through a small membrane which is mainly composed of 3 layers. The oxygen carried by the hemoglobin of the blood is carried back to the heart and from there to the tissues where the blood in the capillaries comes again in direct contact with the cells of the tissues. Oxygen is exchanged through a process of simple diffusion i.e. from the area of high concentration to low concentration.

Carbohydrates, Fats and Proteins Digestion

The digestion of all three main components of the food starts from the small intestine. The digestion of carbohydrates occurs mainly in the small intestine where there are certain enzymes such as sucrase, lactase which breakdown the large polysaccharides to small oligo & monosaccharides which are later absorbed from the lumen. An enzyme amylase is also supposed to be present in the saliva which causes the immediate digestion of carbohydrates in the mouth. The digestion of proteins also occurs mainly in the small intestine with the help of an enzyme, i.e. proteases that cause the breakdown of the large amino acid chains to small ones to make them easier to absorb. The digestion of fats occurs with the help of lipases which causes the release of free fatty acids to be absorbed later on from the lumen.