EducationA light-hearted look at a lion-hearted organ (or, a perspective from three standard deviations beyond the norm) Part 1 (of two parts)⋆
Introduction
A wealth of interesting cardiovascular information is available in nonmedical sources, but these are numerous and often not readily accessible. The purpose of the current report is to compile and organize this information in a single reference for easy access. The material that follows includes data presented (by W.D.E.) in lectures for medical students, residents, and fellows, and at national meetings over the past 14 years. Much of the old material has been updated, and substantial new material has been added (by M.J.L.). This information may be useful to those who prepare lectures dealing with the cardiovascular system.
Section snippets
The heart in fun facts
The heart is an amazingly resilient fist-sized bundle of muscle, both in health and in disease, and the vasculature is no less remarkable (Table 1) [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15]. Each day, the heart beats approximately 100,000 times and pumps over 7500 liters of blood.
Heart rate is inversely related to body size. This is true not only for humans of various ages and sizes (Table 1) but also for animals (Table 2) [15], [16], [17]. The heart of a
The heart in medical photography
Photographs of the heart and vessels may appear abstract to medical students and others. To relate disease states to commonly encountered objects, pathologists traditionally have made food analogies, such as “bread-and-butter” pericarditis (Fig. 1). A nonfood analogy is the “fishmouth deformity” of rheumatic mitral stenosis (Fig. 2). Such photographs have great teaching value and are often long remembered by students [18], [19]. Topics are limited only by one's imagination. For example, to
The heart in history
The history of cardiovascular discoveries may be appropriate to include in our lectures (Table 3) [10], [13], [14], [20], [21], [22], [23], [24], [25], [26], [27], [28], [29], [30], [31], [32], [33], [34], [35], [36], [37]. More than 1800 years ago, Galen concluded that the heart pumped blood throughout the body, although he did not recognize that blood was contained within vessels. Over 1400 years elapsed before William Harvey, in 1628, demonstrated the circulation of blood within the
The heart in languages (etymology)
The Indo–European root word for heart is “kerd”, which has its derivation in the Sanskrit word “hrid” (“h” corresponds phonetically to “k”). [14], [34]) From these arose “cor” (Latin), “kardia” (Greek), and “herton” (German). Our English words “cordial”, “courage”, and “discord” come from “cor”, whereas “cardiac” and “cardiology” are derived from “kardia”.
The English word “heart” has been in common usage since the 16th century [14], [38]. Its roots can be traced to “hert” or “herte” (Middle
The heart in nonmedical English expressions
Emotional events cause catecholamine release and a rapid change in the rate and force of myocardial contractility. Without having to understand the underlying physiology, nearly every culture (and nearly every person) has recognized a link between the heart and the emotions. In love and in fear, our hearts may skip a beat or pound in our chests. As Dr. Bernadine Healy [25] reminds us, “A beating heart is the joyous first sign of life, and it's the sad final thump that marks the moment of death”.
Summary
Part 1 of this literature and Internet review organizes medical and nonmedical information about the cardiovascular system into five topics: (1) fun facts, (2) medical photography, (3) history, (4) language (etymology), and (5) nonmedical English expressions. Part 2 will review six additional topics: (1) death, (2) the arts, (3) movie titles, (4) song titles, (5) Shakespeare, and (6) the Bible.
References (41)
Photography of medical specimens: experiences from teaching cardiovascular pathology
Mayo Clin Proc
(1988)Personal reminiscences of the origin and history of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
Am J Cardiol
(2003)The heart facts: University of Ottawa
Amazing heart facts: NOVA
How your heart works
Heart facts: Cleveland Clinic
Heart facts and trivia
- Guinness world records 2004. New York: Time Inc Home Entertainment, 2003. pp. 12–5,...
- Rippe JM. The healthy heart for dummies. New York: IDG Books Worldwide, 2000. pp. 9,...
The heart: our circulatory system
The book of hearts
Monitoring anesthesia in laboratory animals
In a heartbeat
Standardized nomenclature and anatomic basis for regional tomographic analysis of the heart
Mayo Clin Proc
Cited by (12)
Cardiovascular pathology: Guide to practice and training
2022, Cardiovascular PathologyFlexible nanofilms coated with aligned piezoelectric microfibers preserve the contractility of cardiomyocytes
2017, BiomaterialsCitation Excerpt :Both cells have higher alignment index in MNF+PIEZO scaffolds, along the PIEZO microfibers, than in PS substrate. The average beating rate in humans is 60–70 (1 Hz) [51]. To evaluate whether MNF+PIEZO scaffolds preserve human CM contractility, the number of spontaneous synchronous beatings per minute was monitored at day 1 and 12 post-cell seeding (Fig. 5C).
Development of a perfusable, hierarchical microvasculature-on-a-chip model
2023, Lab on a ChipRed blood cell ATP release correlates with red blood cell hemolysis
2021, American Journal of Physiology - Cell PhysiologyThe Evolving Concept of Mitochondrial Dynamics in Heart: Interventional Opportunities
2019, Modulation of Oxidative Stress in Heart Disease
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Presented, in part, by Dr. Edwards during the Cardiovascular Unit of the Pathophysiology Course, Mayo Medical School (October 1992–2002, and January 2004); during the Internal Medicine Morbidity–Mortality Conference, Mayo Graduate School of Medicine (near Valentine's Day, 1993–1996, 2000, 2002, and 2004); during the Cardiovascular Pathology Specialty Conference, United States–Canadian Academy of Pathology Annual Meeting (March, 1995–1997); and for the Division of Anatomic Pathology (February 14, 1996).