Mnemonic

Try Pulling My Aorta

A mnemonic for the order in which blood passes the four heart valves.

Expansion

Tricuspid, Pulmonary, Mitral, Aortic

Expansion

Following a red blood cell returning from the body:

  • T - Tricuspid valve, right atrium to right ventricle
  • P - Pulmonary valve, right ventricle to pulmonary trunk
  • M - Mitral valve, left atrium to left ventricle
  • A - Aortic valve, left ventricle to aorta

The same order gives the two atrioventricular valves first in each circuit and the two semilunar valves second, which is a useful way of grouping their structure: cusps with chordae tendineae and papillary muscles for the atrioventricular valves, three simple semilunar cusps for the outflow valves.