The Cardiovascular System | AQA A-Level Physical Education (7582)
The Cardiovascular System
- 81 questions
- 5 subtopics
- Paper 1: Factors affecting participation in physical activity and sport
- Paper 1
The Cardiovascular System is examined in Paper 1, Factors affecting participation in physical activity and sport.
It covers heart health, fitness and cardiac output, the cardiac conduction system and heart rate control, receptors, vascular shunting and blood redistribution, oxygen transport, the Bohr shift and the a-VO₂ difference and venous return, Starling's law and cardiovascular drift.
Sample questions from The Cardiovascular System
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Heart health, fitness and cardiac output
What is a stroke?
Show the answer
A stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is cut off. Brain cells in the affected area are starved of oxygen and begin to die. -
Heart health, fitness and cardiac output
How does maximal cardiac output differ between trained and untrained individuals?
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A trained endurance athlete can reach a maximal cardiac output of about 30–40 litres per minute. An untrained person reaches about 20–30 litres per minute, because their maximal stroke volume is smaller. -
The cardiac conduction system and heart rate control
Put the parts of the cardiac conduction system in order, from the start of a heartbeat.
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The order is the SA node, the AV node, the bundle of His, the bundle branches and the Purkinje fibres. -
The cardiac conduction system and heart rate control
Explain the anticipatory rise in heart rate.
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Heart rate rises before exercise begins, as the performer prepares for the event. Adrenaline released from the adrenal glands stimulates the SA node. -
Receptors, vascular shunting and blood redistribution
What is vascular shunting?
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Vascular shunting is the redistribution of cardiac output to where it is most needed. Blood is diverted from organs such as the gut to the working muscles during exercise. -
Receptors, vascular shunting and blood redistribution
Roughly what share of cardiac output goes to skeletal muscle at rest and during intense exercise?
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Skeletal muscle receives about 15–20% of cardiac output at rest. Skeletal muscle receives about 80–85% during intense exercise. -
Oxygen transport, the Bohr shift and the a-VO₂ difference
What does the dissociation curve show about haemoglobin at the lungs?
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The partial pressure of oxygen in the lungs is high. Haemoglobin becomes almost fully saturated with oxygen at the lungs. -
Oxygen transport, the Bohr shift and the a-VO₂ difference
How does the a-VO₂ diff change from rest to exercise?
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The a-VO₂ diff is low at rest because the muscles need little oxygen. The a-VO₂ diff increases during exercise as working muscles extract much more oxygen.
The 5 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Heart health, fitness and cardiac output | Coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, cholesterol and stroke, the cardiac output equation and a worked example, bradycardia and cardiac hypertrophy, stroke volume and heart rate responses to a steady jog and a 400 m race. | 17 |
| The cardiac conduction system and heart rate control | Myogenic cardiac muscle, the SA node, AV node and route of the impulse, the cardiac control centre, sympathetic and parasympathetic control, the anticipatory rise, adrenaline and carbon dioxide. | 15 |
| Receptors, vascular shunting and blood redistribution | Chemoreceptors, proprioceptors and baroreceptors, vascular shunting and the vasomotor centre, vasodilation and vasoconstriction, pre-capillary sphincters and blood flow to muscles, brain and skin. | 16 |
| Oxygen transport, the Bohr shift and the a-VO₂ difference | Haemoglobin and myoglobin, the oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve, the Bohr shift and its causes, the a-VO₂ diff with a worked example, and training adaptations that raise oxygen delivery. | 17 |
| Venous return, Starling's law and cardiovascular drift | Venous return and its mechanisms, pocket valves, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, Starling's law applied to a cyclist, and cardiovascular drift in a marathon. | 16 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
AQA A-Level Physical Education Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 2,084 questions with their answers.