ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
The cardiovascular system can be thought of as the transport system of the
body. This system has three main components: the heart, the blood vessel and the
blood itself. The heart is the system’s pump and the blood vessels are like the
delivery routes. Blood can be thought of as a fluid which contains the oxygen and
nutrients the body needs and carries the wastes which need to be removed.
The cardiovascular system acts as an internal road network, linking all parts of
the body via a system of highways (arteries and veins), main roads (arterioles and
venules) and streets, avenues and lanes (capillaries). This network allows a non-stop
courier system (the blood) to deliver and expel nutrients, gases, waste products and
messages throughout the body. Nutrients such as glucose from digested
carbohydrate are delivered from the digestive tract to the muscles and organs that
require them for energy.  Hormones (chemical messengers) from endocrine glands
are transported by the cardiovascular system to their target organs, and waste
products are transported to the lungs or urinary system to be expelled from the
body.
The cardiovascular system works in conjunction with the respiratory system to
deliver oxygen to the tissues of the body and remove carbon dioxide.  In order to do
this effectively the cardiovascular system is divided into two circuits, known as the
pulmonary circuit and the systemic circuit. The pulmonary circuit is made up of the
heart, lungs, pulmonary veins and pulmonary arteries.  This circuit pumps
deoxygenated (blue) blood from the heart to the lungs where it becomes
oxygenated (red) and returns to the heart. The systemic circuit is made up of the
heart and all the remaining arteries, arterioles, capillaries, venules, and veins in the
body. This circuit pumps oxygenated (red) blood from the heart to all the tissues,
muscles and organs in the body, to provide them with the nutrients and gases they
need in order to function. After the oxygen has been delivered the systemic circuit
picks up the carbon dioxide and returns this in the now deoxygenated (blue) blood,
to the lungs, where it enters the pulmonary circuit to become oxygenated again.
This also functions for the protection from infection and blood loss and for the
maintenance of constant body temperature or thermoregulation. This system also
works in conjunction with other body systems such as nervous and endocrine to
balance the body’s fluid levels.

THE HEART
The heart is a muscular organ that pumps blood around the body by circulating it
through the circulatory/vascular system. It is found in the middle mediastinum,
wrapped in a two-layered serous sac called the pericardium. The heart is shaped as a
quadrangular pyramid, and orientated as if the pyramid has fallen onto one of its sides
so that its base faces the posterior thoracic wall, and its apex is pointed toward the
anterior thoracic wall. The great vessels that originate from the heart, radiate their
branches to the head and neck, the thorax and abdomen and the upper and lower
limbs.
The heart has 4 chambers. The upper chambers are called the left and right atria,
and the lower chambers are called the left and right ventricles. A wall of muscle
called the septum separates the left and right atria and the left and right ventricles.
The left ventricle is the largest and strongest chamber in the heart. The left
ventricle’s chamber walls are only about a half-inch thick, but they have enough force
to push blood through the aortic valve and into the body.
The vital importance of the heart is obvious. If one assumes an average rate of
contraction of 75 contractions per minute, a human heart would contract
approximately 108,000 times in one day, more than 39 million times in one year, and
nearly 3 billion times during a 75-year lifespan. Each of the major pumping chambers
of the heart ejects approximately 70 mL blood per contraction in a resting adult. This
would be equal to 5.25 liters of fluid per minute and approximately 14,000 liters per
day. Over one year, that would equal 10,000,000 liters or 2.6 million gallons of blood
sent through roughly 60,000 miles of vessels.
As a central part of the circulatory system, the heart is primarily responsible for
delivering blood circulation and transportation of nutrients in all parts of the body.
This functions in pumping oxygenated blood, hormones and other vital substances to
different parts of the body. This also receive deoxygenated blood and carry
metabolic waste products from the body and pumping it to the lungs for oxygenation
and maintains blood pressure.

BLOOD
Blood is a constantly circulating fluid providing the body with nutrition, oxygen, and
waste removal. Blood is mostly liquid, with numerous cells and proteins suspended in it,
making blood "thicker" than pure water. The average person has about 5 liters (more
than a gallon) of blood.

A liquid called plasma makes up about half of the content of blood. Plasma contains
proteins that help blood to clot, transport substances through the blood, and perform
other functions. Blood plasma also contains glucose and other dissolved nutrients.

About half of blood volume is composed of blood cells:

• Red blood cells, which carry oxygen to the tissues

• White blood cells, which fight infections
• Platelets, smaller cells that help blood to clot

Blood is conducted through blood vessels (arteries and veins). Blood is prevented
from clotting in the blood vessels by their smoothness, and the finely tuned balance of
clotting factors.

The blood has many functions such as transporting oxygen and nutrients to the
lungs and tissues, carrying cells and antibodies that fight infection, forming blood
clots to prevent excess blood loss, regulating body temperature, and bringing
waste products to the kidneys and liver, which filter and clean the blood. The blood
also provides the body's cells with oxygen and removes carbon dioxide. It also plays
a large role in digestion and endocrine system functions. Digested nutrients are
absorbed into the bloodstream through capillaries in the villi that line the small
intestine. These nutrients include glucose, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and fatty
acids. Blood also transports some hormones secreted by endocrine system glands to
target organs and tissues.

BLOOD VESSELS

Blood vessels are key components of the systemic and pulmonary circulatory
systems that distribute blood throughout the body. There are three major types of
blood vessels: arteries that carry blood away from the heart, branching into smaller
arterioles throughout the body and eventually forming the capillary network. The
latter facilitates efficient chemical exchange between tissue and blood. Capillaries in
turn merge into venules, then into larger veins responsible for returning the blood to
the heart. 

Blood vessels carry nutrients and oxygen throughout the body and aid in gas
exchange. Nutrients carried in the blood are released to tissues via the permeable
endothelium of blood vessels. These also facilitate the rapid distribution and efficient
transport of factors such as glucose, amino acids, or lipids into the tissues and the
removal of waste products for processing elsewhere, such as lactic acid to the liver
or urea to the kidneys. Additionally, blood vessels provide the ideal network for
immune system surveillance and distribution. Immune cells move throughout the
circulatory system and are able to rapidly permeate the walls of blood vessels to
attend sites of injury or infection. Numerous white blood cells circulate around the
body, sensing for infection or injury. Mechanically the blood vessels, especially those
near the skin, play a key role in thermoregulation. Blood vessels can increase or
decrease blood flow near the surface of the body, either increasing or reducing the
amount of heat lost as a means of regulating body temperature. Blood vessels can
swell to allow greater blood flow, allowing for greater radiant heat loss. Conversely,
blood flow through these vessels can be lessened to reduce heat loss in colder
climates.

LYMPH

Lymph is a clear fluid that is derived from blood plasma. The lymph vessels form
a network of branches that reach most of the body’s tissues. They work in a similar
way to the blood vessels. The lymph vessels work with the veins to return fluid from
the tissues. It maintains the balance of fluid between the blood and tissues, known
as fluid homeostasis and forms part of the body’s immune system and helps defend
 against bacteria and other intruders. Lymph also facilitates absorption of fats and fat-
soluble nutrients in the digestive system.

THEORIES NORMAL ABNORMAL

ANAL STAGE (1-3 years old):
Freud’s Psychosexual
 Sphincter muscles develop and
Development
children are able to withhold or
expel fecal material at will.
 the climate surrounding toilet
training can have lasting effects
on children's personalities

PHALLIC STAGE (3-6 years old):

Erikson’s Psychosocial
Development
 the genitalia become an
interesting and sensitive area
of the body.
 Children recognize differences
between the sexes and become
curious about the
dissimilarities.
 This is the period around which
the controversial issues of the
Oedipus and Electra complexes,
penis envy, and castration
anxiety are centered.
AUTONOMY VERSUS SHAME AND
DOUBT (1-3 years old):
 The development of autonomy
during the toddler period is
centered on children's
increasing ability to control
their bodies, themselves, and
their environment.
 They want to do things for
themselves using their newly
acquired motor skills of
walking, climbing, and
manipulating and their mental
powers of selecting and
decision making.
 Much of their learning is
acquired by imitating the
 activities and behavior of
others.
 Negative feelings of doubt and
shame arise when children are
made to feel small and self-
conscious, when their choices
are disastrous, when others
shame them, or when they are
forced to be dependent in
areas in which they are capable
of assuming control.
 As they learn to do things for
themselves, they establish a
sense of control over
themselves as well as some
basic confidence in their own
abilities.
 Other important events include
gaining more control over food
choices, toy preferences, and
clothing selection.

INITIATIVE VERSUS GUILT

(3-6 years old):
 The stage of initiative
corresponds to Freud's phallic
stage and is characterized by
vigorous, intrusive behavior;
enterprise; and a strong
imagination.
 Children begin to exercise more
control over the things that
impact their lives, such
decisions can range from the
friends they play with, the
activities they engage in, and
the way that they approach
different tasks.
 They develop a conscience, no
longer guided only by outsiders
but instead they have an inner
voice that warns and threatens.
 The lasting outcomes are
 direction and purpose.
 Children sometimes undertake
goals or activities that are in
conflict with those of parents
or others, and being made to
feel that their activities or
imaginings are bad produces a
sense of guilt.
Piaget’s Cognitive PREOPERATIONAL STAGE
Development (2.7 years old):
 Children begin to engage in
symbolic play and learn to
manipulate symbols but do
not yet understand concrete
logic cannot mentally
manipulate information, and
are unable to take the point
of view of other people,
which Piaget termed as
egocentrism.

 Role-playing also becomes

important—children often
play the roles of "mommy,"
"daddy," "doctor," and many
other characters.

 Thought is dominated by what they

see, hear, or otherwise experience

Kohlberg’s Moral
Development