Cardiac cycle

The cardiac cycle is divided into two basic phases: systole (contraction and ejection) and diastole (relaxation and filling). Diastole is the time when the ventricles are not contracting but rather relaxed. Blood is passively flowing into the left ventricle (LV) and right ventricle (RV) from the left atrium (RA) for the majority of this time (see figure to the right). Mitral and tricuspid atrioventricular valves separate the atria from the ventricles, allowing blood to flow through them. Through the inferior vena cava (IVC) and superior vena cava (SVC), the RA receives venous blood from the body. Through four pulmonary veins that enter the LA, oxygenated blood from the lungs reaches the LA. Both atria contract at the conclusion of diastole, bringing additional blood into the ventricles. The period of time known as systole is when the left and right ventricles contract and release blood into the pulmonary artery and aorta, respectively. The aortic and pulmonic valves open du...