alleryStart learning →What produces the dicrotic notch seen on a blood pressure tracing?
AThe atria contracting
BThe QRS complex firing
CBlood flowing back in
DThe tricuspid valve shutting
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. Blood flowing back in
1. Early in ventricular diastole the pressure on the remaining blood falls.
2. Once ventricular pressure drops below that in the pulmonary trunk and aorta, blood flows back toward the heart.
3. That backflow produces the dicrotic notch, the small dip on the tracing.
_Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology (CC BY 4.0), Ch 19 "The Cardiovascular System: The Heart", section 19.3 | Cardiac Cycle_
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