Heart valve

Heart valve
Valves of the heart in motion. The front wall of the heart is removed in this image.
Details
SystemCardiovascular
Identifiers
MeSHD006351
FMA7110
Anatomical terminology
Emily’s heartbeat
Sound of the heart valves closing in a healthy 16 year old girl. The stethoscope is at the tricuspid area.
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A heart valve is a biological one-way valve that allows blood to flow in one direction through the chambers of the heart. A mammalian heart usually has four valves. Together, the valves determine the direction of blood flow through the heart. Heart valves are opened or closed by a difference in blood pressure on each side.[1][2][3]

The mammalian heart has two atrioventricular valves separating the upper atria from the lower ventricles: the mitral valve in the left heart, and the tricuspid valve in the right heart. The two semilunar valves are at the entrance of the arteries leaving the heart. These are the aortic valve at the aorta, and the pulmonary valve at the pulmonary artery.

The heart also has a coronary sinus valve and an inferior vena cava valve, not discussed here.

  1. ^ "Heart Valves". American Heart Association, Inc – 10000056 Heart and Stroke Encyclopedia. American Heart Association, Inc. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  2. ^ Klabunde, RE (2009-07-02). "Pressure Gradients". Cardiovascular Physiology Concepts. Richard E. Klabunde. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  3. ^ Klabunde, RE (2007-04-05). "Cardiac Valve Disease". Cardiovascular Physiology Concepts. Richard E. Klabunde. Retrieved 2010-08-06.