Interventricular Septum

The interventricular septum, also known as the septum interventriculare, is a structure in the heart that separates the left and right ventricles. It is an important part of the heart's anatomy and plays a key role in maintaining healthy heart function.

The interventricular septum consists of two layers of muscle tissue separated by a thin layer of connective tissue. This structure starts from the apex of the heart and is located centrally between the right and left ventricles.

One of the main functions of the interventricular septum is to prevent oxygenated and oxygen-poor blood from mixing. The right ventricle pumps blood to the lungs for oxygenation, while the left ventricle pumps blood to the organs and tissues of the body. Without the ventricular septum, oxygen-poor blood from the right ventricle could mix with oxygen-rich blood from the left ventricle and enter the body's circulatory system, which can lead to serious health problems.

In addition, the interventricular septum is involved in maintaining normal blood pressure in the heart. When the right ventricle contracts, it creates high pressure that would damage the left ventricle if not for the interventricular septum.

Although the interventricular septum usually has a fairly strong structure, it can sometimes have defects that can lead to various heart diseases. One such disorder is atrioventricular canal disease, in which the interventricular septum does not fully develop during fetal development, resulting in blood mixing between the left and right ventricles.

Overall, the interventricular septum plays a critical role in maintaining healthy cardiac function. Its structure and function allow the heart to efficiently pump blood throughout the body, preventing the mixing of different blood compositions and maintaining normal blood pressure.

Interventricular septum

The interventricular septum is the structure that separates the left and right ventricles of the heart. It is an important part of the normal anatomy of the heart, allowing blood from the left and right ventricles to circulate in separate circuits.

The interventricular septum consists of dense connective tissue and cardiac muscle. It is attached to the annulus fibrosus of the aortic and tricuspid valves. Under normal conditions, the interventricular septum completely separates the blood flow between the left and right ventricles.

However, sometimes defects occur in the interventricular septum, known as ventricular septal defects. This can cause blood to mix between the left and right ventricles, causing cyanosis and heart failure. Small defects may close on their own, but large defects usually require surgery to close them.

Thus, the interventricular septum plays an important role in the normal structure and function of the heart. Its integrity is critical to maintaining divided blood flow between the left and right ventricles.