An artery is an elastic blood vessel that transports blood away from the heart. There are two main types of arteries: pulmonary arteries and systemic arteries.
Pulmonary arteries carry blood from the heart to the lungs where the blood picks up oxygen. The oxygen rich blood is then returned to the heart via the pulmonary veins. Systemic arteries deliver blood to the rest of the body. The aorta is the main systemic artery and the largest artery of the body. It originates from the heart and branches out into smaller arteries which supply blood to the head region brachiocephalic artery, the heart itself coronary arteries, and the lower regions of the body.
The smallest arteries are called arterioles and they play a vital role in microcirculation. Microcirculation deals with the circulation of blood from arterioles to capillaries to venules the smallest veins. The liver, spleen and bone marrow contain vessel structures called sinusoids instead of capillaries. In these structures blood flows from arterioles to sinusoids to venules.
The artery wall consists of three layers;
•Tunica Adventitia - the strong outer covering of arteries and veins. It is composed of connective tissue as well as collagen and elastic fibres. These fibres allow the arteries and veins to stretch to prevent overexpansion due to the pressure that is exerted on the walls by blood flow.
•Tunica Media - the middle layer of the walls of arteries and veins. It is composed of smooth muscle and elastic fibres. This layer is thicker in arteries than in veins. Its function is to help in the increasing and decreasing in calibre of the artery.
•Tunica Intima - the inner layer of arteries and veins. In arteries this layer is composed of an elastic membrane lining and smooth e...
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...Another difference between the three is that the arteries mainly carry oxygenated blood. This is different to the veins because they mostly carry de-oxygenated blood, furthermore out of the three, the capillaries have the smallest blood vessels out of the three.
A third difference is that the arteries have high pressure within the blood, this is not the same in the veins though as the blood that they carry into the heart contains lower pressure.
Another contrasting point between the arteries and the veins is that the veins have thin outer walls, this is different to the arteries because they have much thicker outer walls which means that they can pump out a lot more blood.
The arteries have a thick inner layer of muscle and elastic fibres. This means that they can stretch a lot more than the veins that have a thin inner layer, this means that they are more compact.
Capillaries are very small; in fact, capillaries are the tiniest of all blood vessels. They form the connection between veins and arterioles in the circulatory system. However, capillaries tend to be found everywhere. Unlike veins and arteries, the capillaries main function is not transporting blood. They allow the movement of substances, mainly gases Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide into and out of the capillary. Capillaries have very thin walls that are only one cell thick, which allows substances (such as oxygen) to diffuse through the wall effortlessly. They are also incredibly narrow; so narrow, that blood cells move through it one at a time. As arteries divide into arterioles and continue to diminish in size as they near muscle, they become capillaries. Here, the capillaries form a mesh like structure (capillary bed), forming a network throughout the muscle. This allows a fast and efficient transfer of oxygen-carrying red blood cells to the site where they are needed. With the combined structure of the thin walls and a large surface area, capillaries allow diffusion of oxygen and carbon dioxide with ease. This is ideal for the respiratory system which is in charge of oxidizing the blood
In an arterial system, the input impedance of the vessel varies with changes in the vessel’s size and properties. For compliant arteries, whic...
...at carry blood into the heart are the superior vena cava and the inferior vena cava. They are called this because they are the veins of the heart. The superior is located near the top of the heart. The inferior is located beneath the superior (The Franklin Institute, 2014).
The Circulatory System is a transportation and cooling system for the body. The Red Blood Cells act like billions of little mail men carrying all kinds of things that are needed by the cells, also RBC's carry oxygen and nutrients to the cells. All cells in the body require oxygen to remain alive. Also there is another kind of cells called white blood cells moving in the system. Why blood cells protect from bacteria and other things that are harmful. The Circulatory system contains vein arteries, veins are used to carry blood to the heart and arteries to carry the blood away. The blood inside veins is where most of the oxygen and nutrients are and is called deoxygenated and the color of the blood is dark red. However, blood in the arteries are also full of oxygen but is a bright red. The main components of the circulatory system are the heart, blood, and blood vessels.
The three differences between arteries and veins are which veins they have few layers of smooth muscles and connective tissue unlike arteries which have many layers of smooth muscle tissues. The difference in the two is also veins have very little elastic as well as a wide lumen and arteries have several layers elastic and a regular lumen. Last but not least veins carry oxygenated poor blood to the heart and arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart.
Coronary artery: Brings blood and nutrients to the heart, also helps to remove waste products.
The systemic route is the major part of the circulatory system. The systemic route is responsible for transporting blood to all of the tissues located in your body except for the lungs and the heart. Oxygenated blood from the aorta travels through the arteries, veins, and capillaries. The arteries carry the oxygenated blood to the tissues and the veins carry the deoxygenated blood back to the heart.
Coronary heart disease is defined by the hardening of the epicardial coronary arteries. The buildup of plaque in the arteries slowly narrows the coronary artery lumen. In order to better understand the physiology of the disease, it is important to first know the basic anatomy of the human heart. The aorta, located in the superior region of the heart, branches off into two main coronary blood vessels, otherwise known as arteries. The arteries are located on the left and right side of the heart and span its surface. They subsequently branch off into smaller arteries which supply oxygen-rich blood to the entire heart (Texas Heart Institute, 2013). Therefore, the narrowing of these arteries due to plaque buildup significantly impairs blood flow throughout the heart.
Through the examination, it was evident that the tissues within the heart varied significantly in thickness and size. We were able to insert our fingers through the blood vessels. By doing so, we were able to identify whether the vessel was an artery or vein. The artery of the heart was much thicker and bigger than the veins, this was because the arteries were responsible for transferring oxygenated blood from the heart to the rest of the body, which requires great strength. The heart itself created pressure differences that helped blood to flow from high to low pressure. The artery pumped blood at high pressure so that it could travel to all the body parts. The thick walls of the arteries were needed to withstand the high pressure coming from the heart. The blood returned to the heart through veins, and because of the lower pressure, the walls of the veins were
The arteries supply blood rich in oxygen to the body, the veins direct deoxygenated blood from the capillaries back to the heart. These roles make up the circulatory function. Blood flow through these blood vessels can be disrupted resulting in peripheral vascular diseases. These diseases occur as a result of narrowing or blocking of the blood vessels. The risk factors of peripheral vascular diseases include diabetes, smoking, high level of cholesterol, overweight, high blood pressure etc. these risk factors result to aneurysms, Raynaud’s diseases, Buerger’s disease, renal artery disease etc. With this diseases, the peripheral vascular system should be assessed to enable nurses and other health personnel make good
The combination of these is called hemolymph or haemolymph. It consists of a heart, vessels, and hemolymph. The hymolymph is first pumped into the aorta through the heart, dispersed into the head and throughout the hemocoel. It then travels back through the ostium that are located in the heart, where the process is repeated. Muscular movements by the animal during locomotion facilitate hemolymph movement around the body in all directions. The hemolymph bathes the organs directly supplying oxygen and removing waste. Blood flows at a very slow speed because of absence of smooth muscles that are responsible for contraction of blood vessels. Blood is drawn back toward the heart through open-ended pores (ostia) when the heart relaxes. Most invertebrates (Arthropoda and Mollusca) have an open circulatory
Healthy arteries are flexible, strong, and elastic. Their inner layer is smooth and blood flows freely. As you get older, your arteries become thicker, less elastic, and deposits build in them. This leads to a general hardening of the arteries, which is also called atherosclerosis.
Ventricles are larger because they have to pump the blood longer distances than the atriums. Blood flows through the heart in one direction; the valves that are created by the endocardium maintain this one directional flow. There are two sets of valves present in the heart, atrioventricular (AV) valves, and semilunar valves (Mahadeven, 2015). The AV valves are located between the top portion of the heart called atriums, and the lower portion of the heart called ventricles and the semilunar valves are located between the ventricles and the major arteries inside the heart- the pulmonary artery and the aorta (Mahadeven,
Your Heart and Blood Vessels – Illustrations and facts of the anatomy of the heart.