Cardiac Cycle

• The cardiac cycle begins when the heart receives impure blood from body organs. The heart then sends it to the lungs for oxygenation, receives it back from the lungs and then pumps it back to different organs of the body.
  
  The blood is received in the right atrium of the heart from different body organs and sent to the right ventricle of the heart (located just below the atrium). From the right ventricle, the blood is transferred to the lungs via pulmonary artery. The lungs oxygenate the blood and send it back via pulmonary vein to left atrium. From here, blood is sent to the left ventricle (located just below the left atrium), and then to the rest of the body through the aorta.
  
  

Need for Analysis

• A cardiac functional analysis addresses all aspects of heart health. Several factors contribute to heart disease. When the heart is overworked, it is subjected to a lot of stress. Over a period of time, this pressure thickens the walls of the heart, which leads to decreased capacity of the heart. This increases the chances of a heart attack. In some cases, the valves (flaps at ends of heart that control the flow of blood) can be clogged or an aorta is blocked, also making a heart attack more likely.
  
  

Cardiac Arrest

• Cardiac arrest is a state in which the heart stops functioning, which leads to brain damage if not treated within five minutes of its onset. Since blood does not flow throughout the body during a cardiac arrest, the level of oxygen in vital organs decreases. This may lead to immediate death of the patient. These days, cardiac functional analysis makes it possible to predict a cardiac arrest and treat it effectively.
  
  

Methods Used

• A cardiac functional analysis involves a number of medical tests. These include EKG, heart ultrasound, MRI, heart CT scan, stress test and tilt-table test. The analysis may also include a heart catheterization, heart biopsy and sampling the fluid surrounding the heart for testing.
  
  

Uses

• A cardiac analysis prevents a lot of problems by allowing early diagnosis. With the analysis results, the doctor has a detailed picture of the patient's cardiac health. Early diagnosis allows patients to make lifestyle changes as well as take proper medications and precautions.