How does ejection fraction reflect cardiac output?
This is a very complex question. I hope you have a basic understanding of human anatomy and physiology. It is a type of question which ICU nurses have to answer, often. In cardiovascular physiology, ejection fraction (Ef) is the fraction of blood pumped out of a ventricle with each heart beat. The term ejection fraction applies to both the right and left ventricles; one can speak equally of the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and the right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF). Without a qualifier, the term ejection fraction refers specifically to that of the left ventricle. Its reverse operation is the injection fraction. By definition, the volume of blood within a ventricle immediately before a contraction is known as the end-diastolic volume. Similarly, the volume of blood left in a ventricle at the end of contraction is end-systolic volume. The difference between end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes is the stroke volume, the volume of blood ejected with each beat. Ejecti
