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What Distinguishes the Atria From the Ventricles?

The heart is a complex organ that supports life by circulating blood throughout the body. An adult's heart isw approximately the size of a fist. The heart has four main chambers: a right and left atria, and right and left ventricles. Blood travels through the body through blood vessels. It travels away from the heart through arteries and returns to the heart through veins. Each chamber of the heart has a specific function, but in general the atria collect blood and the ventricles pump it out.

  1. Right Atrium

    • The right atrium is in the right upper section of the heart. This chamber collects de-oxygenated blood as it returns from other parts of the body. The blood enters the right atrium through large veins called the superior and inferior vena cavae. The superior vena cava collects blood from the upper half of the body, and the inferior vena cava receives blood from the lower half of the body. Blood travels from the right atrium into the right ventricle through the tricuspid valve.

    Right Ventricle

    • The right ventricle is in the lower right section of the heart. This chamber receives de-oxygenated blood from the right atrium and pumps it out through the pulmonary artieries to the lungs to pick up more oxygen. In the lungs, little blood vessels called capillaries pick up oxygen, and the oxygenated blood travels back to the heart through the pulmonary veins.

    Left Atrium

    • The left atrium collects oxygenated blood as it travels back from the lungs through the pulmonary veins. It is in the upper left section of the heart. Oxygenated blood travels from the left atrium through the mitral valve into the left ventricle.

    Left Ventricle

    • The left ventricle is in the lower left portion of the heart. This ventricle pumps oxygenated blood out of the heart through the aorta into the arteries to be delivered to the rest of the body.

    Dysfunction

    • Dysfunction of the atria of the heart is typically not life-threatening. Heart function reduces, but gravity will help move blood from the atria to the ventricles. Ventricle dysfunction is more serious, as these chambers are responsible for pumping blood away from the heart, a function necessary to sustain life. Congestive heart failure occurs when the heart is too weak to pump blood away from the heart efficiently.

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