6.2 - The blood system
Assessment statements
| DCS Topic Code | Statement | Guidance |
| 6.2.U1 | Arteries convey blood at high pressure from the ventricles to the tissues of the body. | |
| 6.2.U2 | Arteries have muscle cells and elastic fibres in their walls. | |
| 6.2.U3 | The muscle and elastic fibres assist in maintaining blood pressure between pump cycles. | |
| 6.2.U4 | Blood flows through tissues in capillaries. Capillaries have permeable walls that allow exchange of materials between cells in the tissue and the blood in the capillary. | |
| 6.2.U5 | Veins collect blood at low pressure from the tissues of the body and return it to the atria of the heart. | |
| 6.2.U6 | Valves in veins and the heart ensure circulation of blood by preventing backflow. | |
| 6.2.U7 | There is a separate circulation for the lungs. | |
| 6.2.U8 | The heart beat is initiated by a group of specialized muscle cells in the right atrium called the sinoatrial node. | |
| 6.2.U9 | The sinoatrial node acts as a pacemaker. | |
| 6.2.U10 | The sinoatrial node sends out an electrical signal that stimulates contraction as it is propagated through the walls of the atria and then the walls of the ventricles. | |
| 6.2.U11 | The heart rate can be increased or decreased by impulses brought to the heart through two nerves from the medulla of the brain. | |
| 6.2.U12 | Epinephrine increases the heart rate to prepare for vigorous physical activity. | |
| 6.2.A1 | William Harvey’s discovery of the circulation of the blood with the heart acting as the pump. | |
| 6.2.A2 | Pressure changes in the left atrium, left ventricle and aorta during the cardiac cycle. | |
| 6.2.A3 | Causes and consequences of occlusion of the coronary arteries. | |
| 6.2.S1 | Identification of blood vessels as arteries, capillaries or veins from the structure of their walls. | |
| 6.2.S2 | Recognition of the chambers and valves of the heart and the blood vessels connected to it in dissected hearts or in diagrams of heart structure. |
Notes
| 6.2_notes.pdf |