Myocardium

/mˌa‍ɪəkˈɑːdi‍əm/

/ˌmaɪəˈkɑɹdiəm/

[noun]

Myocardium

[NOUN]

the muscular layer of the heart responsible for its contraction and pumping action

What is "myocardium"?

The myocardium is the muscular tissue that forms the middle layer of the heart wall. It consists of specialized cardiac muscle cells that contract rhythmically to pump blood throughout the body. The myocardium is thicker in the left ventricle, which pumps oxygenated blood to the systemic circulation, compared to the right ventricle, which pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs. Its intricate structure and contractile properties enable the heart to efficiently circulate blood and maintain overall cardiovascular function.

Examples

1. The electrical impulses then move through the myocardium to the other side.

2. When this happens in a coronary artery, the downstream patch of the myocardium dies from lack of oxygen.

3. I'm not talking about my pictorial muscle, I'm talking about the heart, the cardiac muscle, the myocardium.

4. In this case, less blood and oxygen gets through the coronary artery to the heart tissue, which damages the myocardium.