Glossary

Term	Definition
Afterload	Resistance against which ventricle must eject its volume of blood during systole.
Allograft	Tissue from one person’s body placed in another person; homograft (example: transplant donor heart).
Anastomosis	The joining of a blood vessel or body part to another.
Aneurysm	Localized abnormal dilation of a blood vessel.
Angioplasty	Repair or reconstruction of a blood vessel.
Annulus	A ring-shaped structure surrounding a cardiac valve.
Arrhythmia	Irregular or absent heart rhythm; dysrhythmia.
Arterial Insufficiency	Inadequate arterial blood flow.
Arteriosclerosis	Thickening and hardening of the arteries, leading to an inability of the vessel to change its lumen size.
Asynchronous	Failure of events to occur in time with each other.
Atherosclerosis	Deposition of lipids in the lining of the large and medium sized muscular arteries.
Autograph	Tissue from one part of a person’s body placed in another part (example: saphenous vein graft).
Bioprosthesis	A replacement part for a body made from (previously) living tissue (example: porcine heart valve).
Cardiac output	The amount of blood pumped by the right or left ventricle per minute.
Cardiopulmonary Bypass	ExtraCorporeal system for draining venous blood, removing carbon dioxide, oxygenating it, and pumping it back into the arterial circulation.
Catecholamines	The biologically active amines, epinephrine and norepinephrine, which have a marked effect on the nervous and cardiovascular systems.
Catheter	A tube for removing, draining, or injecting fluids.
Collateral Circulation	Small connecting blood vessels.
Coronary Artery Disease (CAD)	Presence of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries.
Coronary Artery Spasm	Constriction of an artery severe enough to interfere with blood flow. If prolonged, can lead to permanent damage.
Coronary Heart Disease	Presence of CAD with symptoms (angina or heart attack). Also called atherosclerotic heart disease (ASHD)
Cyanosis	Bluish discoloration of the skin and mucous membranes caused by deficiency of oxygen and excess carbon dioxide in blood.
Defibrillation	Most commonly, use of an electric shock to stop irregular, uncoordinated, asynchronous contraction of the atrium or ventricle.
Dyspnea	Difficult or labored breathing.
Ectopic	In an abnormal position, or originating from an abnormal position.
Edema	Excessive amount of extra-cellular fluid in tissues (swelling).
Ejection fraction	The percentage of blood in the ventricle that is actually pumped into the circulation with each contraction (normal is 60% to 70%); often used as an indicator of left ventricular function.
Embolus	A mass of undissolved matter (such as a clot or air) originating in one part of the body, which has traveled to another part of the body (usually a blood vessel).
Etiology	Cause(s) of a disease.
Extrinsic	From, or coming from, without.
Fibrillation	Rapid, tremulous, ineffectual contractions of the ventricles; a lethal dysrhythmia.
Hemodynamics	The forces involved in circulating blood through the body.
Heterograft	Tissue from another species placed in a person’s body; xenograft (example, porcine valve).
Infarction	Death of tissue due to lack of oxygen.
Intrinsi	Due to causes or elements within the body.
Ischemic Heart Disease	General term that refers to a condition in which there is an imbalance in the heart’s oxygen supply / demand.
MmHg	Millimeters of mercury (a pressure measurement).
Mural	Pertaining to a wall of an organ or part.
Myocardial Infarction (MI)	Death, or necrosis, or heart muscle due to prolonged ischemia. “Heart attack.”
Myocardial oxygen consumption	The amount of oxygen utilized by the heart muscle.
Obturator	A device used to size or measure a valve orifice; used to select the most appropriately-sized prosthesis.
Patent	Wide open; not restricting (blood) flow.
Percutaneous	Through the skin.
Perfusion	Arterial flow of blood through an organ or tissue.
Peripheral	Located in the periphery or extremity.
Precordium	The area on the anterior surface of the body overlying the heart and great vessels.
Preload	The volume of blood in the ventricle at the end of diastole.
Prosthesis	An artificial organ, blood vessel, valve, or other body part.
Regurgitatio	Backward flow, as of blood through a defective heart value.
Resistance	Opposition of force or flow; in the vascular system, retardation of blood flow by constriction of vessels.
Revascularization	Provision of renewed circulation to an organ or tissue.
Shunt	An artificially constructed or anomalous passage that diverts flow from one main route to another.
Stenosis	Constriction or narrowing of a passage or orifice.
Supraventricular	Occurring above the ventricles (e.g., in the atria).
Suture	Thread used for sewing tissue, blood vessels together.
Syncope	Transient loss of consciousness; fainting due to inadequate blood flow to the brain.
Systemic	Pertaining to the whole body rather than to one of its parts.
Thrombolytic	Causing the breaking up or disintegration of a thrombus.
Thrombosis	The formation of a blood clot or thombus.
Thrombus	A blood clot obstructing a blood vessel or cavity of the heart.
Transluminal	The passage of an object through the lumen of a blood vessel.
Transthoracic	Through the chest.
Vasoconstriction	The narrowing of blood vessels.
Vasodilatio	Dilation or relaxation of blood vessels.
Viscosity	The property of a fluid which enables it to offer resistance to flow.