1.2  Anatomy and physiology of the heart

The heart is the source of power, the pump that drives blood through the network of blood vessels throughout the body. Together the heart and blood vessels form the cardiovascular system. In fact, the heart consists of two pumps that serve two separate systems of blood vessels: the pulmonary circulation, which goes through the lungs, and the systemic circulation, which goes through the rest of the body (see Figure 1.2).

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Figure 1.2  The pulmonary circulation to the lungs and the systemic circulation to the rest of the body.