Jurassic Heart

About two years ago, I went to a presentation on transmyocardial laser revascularization. The introduction traced the development of the technique from studies on reptile hearts.

In the majority of reptiles, presumably also dinosaurs, myocardial perfusion is part arterial and part due to canaliculi open directly to the ventricular lumen. Blood passes into these from the ventricle blood pool during diastole.

Here the human heart is alive with dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. Under skies darkened by right ventricular papillary volcanoes, a Tyrannosaurus rex startles several Oviraptors while Triceratops looks on from the PA.

A pterodactyl soars up to the tricuspid orifice during systole. Stegosaurus stands under pulmonary vein cycads; aortic arch Diplodocus are munching the leaves of giant, venous Sigillaria trees. A narrow-complex tachycardia marks the suture lines on the arch ammonite.

Three scaly claws mark the confluence of hepatic and portal veins into the IVC; the giant meter-wide dragonfly Meganeura, which predated the dinosaurs by some hundred million years, is "winging it" as the anterior cardiac plexus.