WHERE IS THE HUMAN HEART LOCATED? - ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY - 2024

The human heart is located in the center of the chest, behind the breastbone, slightly to the left side. It sits between the lungs and is right in front of the spine (vertebral column).

The heart is the size of a fist. If you want to locate the exact place of the heart, you should rest your closed right hand in the center of the chest. Then it should move a little to the left side. There is the heart.

In very rare cases the heart leans to the right side. It is a clinical condition called dextrocardia and is congenital in nature.

Exact location of the heart

The heart is protected within the body by the rib cage. The ribs form the rib cage that connects the spine in the back and the sternum in the front.

To understand where the different parts of the heart are located, you need to locate and count the ribs.

The first ribs are not easy to find because they are hidden behind the clavicles.

However, the second ribs can be found by touch and used to count and locate the ones that follow.

The top of the breastbone is that indentation below the neck that you see when looking in the mirror.

When this point is located, you simply move your fingers to the left or right to touch the second rib.

From this point down are the others. To know the exact location of the heart, one must count up to the sixth rib.

How is the heart formed?

The layers of the heart are the tissues that make up the wall of this organ and are the endocardium, myocardium and pericardium.

In humans, other mammals, and birds, the heart is divided into four chambers, or chambers: the upper left and right atrium, and the lower left and right ventricles.

The right atrium and right ventricle are known as the right heart and the right atrium and right ventricle as the right heart.

The heart muscle is the strongest tissue in the body. It is responsible for pumping the oxygenated blood obtained from the lungs to the rest of the body, and it does so through the circulatory system.

The heart is enclosed in the pericardium, which is a double layer. The pericardium is attached by strong ligaments to the diaphragm, the spine, and other parts.

It is the thickest and outermost layer of the heart and separates it from other organs. Multiple and important blood vessels are surrounded or enveloped in this layer.

Inside, the heart is hollow and divided into four chambers. The two upper chambers are called the left and right atria. The bottom two are called the left and right ventricles.

Why is it leaning to the left side of the body?

There are some theories regarding this question. The most creditable is the one that says that the left ventricle is larger because it pumps blood throughout the body, while the right ventricle only carries blood to the lungs, which are very close to it.

The greater weight of the left ventricle would be the reason why the heart leans to that side.

Other theories believe that the same evolution of mammals led to the heart moving from the center. I needed to find more space since it is limited in the center by the sternum.

Can the heart hurt?

It is important to know that the heart does not have nervous sensitivity to pain, unlike the walls of the chest.

You cannot feel pain directly in the heart. The pains due to abnormalities in the same do not correspond to the location of the heart in the chest.

The pains that come from the lack of blood supply to the heart start from a complex process. Many times you may not feel any chest pain.

Importance of knowing the location of the heart

Correctly locating the heart helps to know the severity of cardiac symptoms, to know the urgency of medical attention.

Many people fear that chest pain is a sign of heart disease. It is not always so, although such pain is not something to be ignored.

When you feel pain or pressure right where your heart is, it doesn't necessarily mean you are having a heart attack.

Similarly, it may be that someone feels pain in another place in the chest, different from the location of the heart, and is having a heart attack. The reason for the pain is not necessarily related to the location of the pain.

References

1. Matthew Hoffman, MD (2017). Picture of the heart. 11/13/2017. webmd.com
2. Editor (2017). Where is the heart located in the body. 11/13/2017. healthy-heart-guide.com
3. Editor (2017) Know where your heart is and how to identify heart pain. 11/13/2017 newhealthaisha.com
4. Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD (2017). Where is the heart located in the chest? 11/13/2017. sharecare.com
5. Nabin Sapkota, MD (2015). Where is the heart located? 11/13/2017. symptomsdiagnosisbook.com