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Anatomy And Physiology Of The Circulatory System Essay

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1.5 Anatomy and Physiology
1.5.1 Circulatory System The main function of the circulatory system is to efficiently circulate blood, nutrients, and delivering oxygen to all of the body tissues while removing carbon dioxide and hormones (S. Whittemore & Cooley, 2009). The human circulatory system is a closed loop composed of two circulation pathways in series: the pulmonary and systemic pathways. Figure 2 illustrates the circulatory system as a closed loop system transporting blood to their respective locations. Figure 2. (A) The circulatory system consists of a series of veins, arteries, capillaries, arterioles, and venules that transfer blood to and from the heart. (B) Two major circuits of the circulatory system: Pulmonary circuit and Systemic Circuit (Sloane, 1994).

The pulmonary circulation system is a high-flow and low-pressure system that is influenced by pressures produced by the heart and thorax (Fishman, 1985). Pneumonic flow transports deoxygenated blood from the right ventricle of the heart to the pulmonary artery. The pulmonary artery divides into two smaller branches, each carrying deoxygenated blood to the respective lung (Bhise, 2008). The lung is the important link in transporting oxygen from the air to the blood. The lungs are large highly compliant vasculature beds where gas exchange occurs causing the oxygenation of blood. Four pulmonary veins collect the oxygenated blood from the right and left lung; decanting the blood into the left atrium (Bhise,

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