Diastole
This section is about
Structures of the Heart
A diastole is the time period between two consecutive contractions of the heart muscle (also known as cardiac muscle).
During this time between contractions of the heart muscle, the heart relaxes, allowing its chambers to fill with blood which will then be pumped around the body by the next contraction of the heart muscle.
More specifically, the term diastole is usually used to refer to a 'ventricular diastole', which has a duration of approx. 0.5 seconds in the case of a normal heart rate of about 70 beats per minute. However, during periods of exertion (e.g. while participating in sports), this time period shortens as the heart rate increases.
More about the heart and blood circulation:
See the following for more about the heart, blood, blood circulation, disorders of the blood circulation system, and related topics.
- The Structure of the Heart
- The Functions of the Heart
- Systemic Circulation (i.e. blood flow around the body beyond the heart and lungs)
- Pulmonary Circulation (i.e. blood flow through the heart and lungs)
- Heart Conditions, heart problems and disorders, both chronic and acute
- Heart Disease Risk Factors, avoidable and unavoidable
- Discoveries about the circulatory system and how it works
- Books about heart disease.
