Cardiac Vascular Nursing Certification Practice Exam 2025 – Your All-in-One Guide to Exam Success!

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According to Frank-Starling's Law of the Heart, how does increased blood volume in the ventricles affect cardiac contraction?

It has no effect on contraction strength

It decreases contraction strength

It increases contraction strength up to a point

Frank-Starling's Law of the Heart states that the strength of the heart's contractions is directly related to the initial length of the cardiac muscle fibers (preload), which is influenced by the volume of blood filling the ventricles. When there is an increase in blood volume in the ventricles, this leads to an increased stretch of the myocardium, resulting in a more forceful contraction. The law highlights that up to a certain point, as the volume of blood increases, the heart will respond with increased contraction strength.

However, this relationship has a limit. If the volume continues to increase excessively, the ability of the heart to contract effectively may diminish, which could lead to heart failure. Therefore, the correct answer emphasizes that there is a beneficial relationship between increased blood volume and contraction strength, but this is only true up to a certain physiological limit.

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It leads to irregular heartbeats

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