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Serving Florida
Erik Helms
Program Director
1-877-282-2071
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Respiratory and Circulatory System
Respiratory System
Each cell of the body requires
a regular supply of oxygen in order to stay alive. Because
the body cannot store oxygen, as it does with food and water,
we must continually breathe oxygen into the lungs. Respiration
is taking in oxygen and giving off carbon dioxide. The respiratory
system is a collection of organs involved in this process.
Basically, It is made up of the lungs (A), Bronchial tubes
(B), nose (C), mouth (D) windpipe (E) and diaphragm (F).
When you take a breath, the diaphragm moves down and the chest
moves out, drawing air into the lungs this is called inhalation.
The air we Inhale contains approximately 21% oxygen. In the
lungs, oxygen is absorbed into the bloodstream and circulated
throughout the body when the diaphragm moves up, air exits
the lungs (exhalation). Carbon dioxide ls released In the
exhaled air Not all of the oxygen is used by the body In the
breathing process. Exhaled air contains about 16-17% oxygen
When delivered during rescue breathing, this is enough oxygen
to support life.
Circulatory
System
The function of the circulatory system is to deliver oxygen
and nutrients to the body tissues and remove waste products
from them. The driving force of the system is the heart (A)
Special tissue runs throughout the heart that is capable of
creating and conducting electric current. This electric current
triggers the rhythmic mechanical contractions that create
flow of blood through the body's blood vessels and heart (circulation)
Large vessels called arteries (B) carry oxygenated blood from
the heart to body tissues Capillaries (C) are where oxygen,
nutrients and waste products are exchanged and where arteries
connect to veins (D) to return -- used blood back to the heart.
From there, the used blood is sent to the lungs where carbon
dioxide is released and fresh oxygen is picked up. The fresh
blood is returned to the heart and the cycle repeats. The
body cannot survive when circulation stops. Brain tissue is
especially sensitive to a lack of oxygen. External chest compressions
combined with rescue breathing (CPR) is essential for providing
blood flow to vital organs during cardiac arrest. Immediate
CPR can double or triple a patient's chance of survival Unfortunately,
the majority of cardiac arrest survivors remain In a coma
for varying lengths of time and full brain recovery is rare
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