Fetal Circulation Quiz: Maternal-Fetal Connection

Study Notes

Fetal circulation is complex and different from adult circulation.
Fetus has a heart with four chambers: right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, and left ventricle.
Right side of heart pumps blood into lungs, but in fetal circulation, there's an opening called foramen ovale that allows blood to flow from right atrium to left atrium bypassing lungs.
Left side of heart pumps blood to rest of fetal body, and there's another opening called patent ductus arteriosus that connects pulmonary artery to aorta, bypassing lungs.
Blood can bypass lungs in fetal circulation due to high pressure in fetal lungs and patent openings.
Placenta is an important connection between mother and fetus, delivering oxygen and nutrients via umbilical cord.
Umbilical vein carries oxygenated blood from placenta to fetal liver, which then becomes ductus venosus and joins inferior vena cava.
Inferior vena cava contains partly oxygenated and deoxygenated blood, which enters right atrium and either goes to right ventricle or left atrium via patent foramen ovale.
Blood that bypasses lungs enters left ventricle and aorta, supplying fetal tissue with oxygenated blood.
Deoxygenated blood returns to heart via veins, but in fetal circulation, there are umbilical arteries that carry some of this blood back to placenta for reoxygenation.
Maternal and fetal blood do not mix in placenta, with fetal red blood cells having more hemoglobin and affinity for oxygen.
Oxygen from maternal red blood cells transferred to fetal red blood cells via placenta, and carbon dioxide from fetal blood is excreted via maternal blood.
After birth, fetal circulation changes into adult circulation, with patent openings closing and umbilical structures disappearing or becoming ligaments.

Description

Explore the unique characteristics of fetal circulation and the crucial role of the placenta in delivering oxygen and nutrients from the mother to the fetus. Learn about the specific openings and structures involved in fetal circulation and how it transitions into adult circulation after birth.