Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which heart function as a pump to deliver oxygen rich blood to the body is not sufficient to meet the needs of our bodies. Congestive heart failure can be caused by:
1. a disease that weakens the heart muscles,
2. a disease that causes stiffness of the heart muscles, or
3. diseases that increase oxygen demand by tissues outside the heart's ability to provide it.
The heart has two atria or veranda-porch (right atrium and left atrium) that form the heart chambers top and two ventricles or chambers (left ventricle and right ventricle) that form the heart chambers bottom. Ventricle-ventricle is a muscular chambers that pump blood when the muscles contracted (contraction of the muscles of the ventricle is called systole).
Many diseases can interfere with pumping action of the ventricles. For example, the muscles of the ventricles can be weakened by heart attacks or infections (myocarditis). Reduced pumping ability of the ventricles caused by muscle weakness called systolic dysfunction. After each contraction the ventricle (systole) ventricle muscles need to relax to allow blood from the atria to fill the ventricles. Relaxation of the ventricles is called diastole.
3D Medical Animation - Congestive Heart Failure