right atrium (anatomy)
Last reviewed 01/2018
The right atrium is the first heart chamber on the right side of the heart. It is an obliquely-formed quadrangle in shape. It forms the majority of the right border of the heart. It receives blood from the:
- superior vena cava
- inferior vena cava
- coronary sinus
- venae cordis minimae
- anterior cardiac veins
- right marginal vein
The right atrium is slightly elongated; the superior part is marked by the orifice of the superior vena cava. The inferior end of the chamber has the tricuspid - atrioventricular - orifice.
It pumps blood into the right ventricle through the tricuspid valve. Anatomically, it can be divided into two areas with different embryological origins:
- anterior part
- posterior part
The two are separated by the crista terminalis.
anterior part (right atrium, anatomy)
posterior part (right atrium, anatomy)