atrioventricular node
The atrioventricular node, or AV node, is one of the major parts of the cardiac electrical conduction system, which controls heart rate and rhythm. This system generates electrical impulses and conducts them throughout the heart, stimulating the heart to contract and pump blood. Electrical impulses begin in the sinoatrial node and move down until reaching the AV node, a cluster of cells at the bottom of the heart’s right upper chamber. The AV node serves as a sort of electrical relay station that slows the current before the signal passes to the lower chambers.
