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AskHello doctor. Can you help me distinguish between arteries, veins and capillaries in terms of definition, structure and function? Hope you answer, thank you.
Anonymous question
Answer
Hello!
Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood from the heart to the tissues. From the aorta onwards, the arteries divide into smaller branches. The further away from the heart, the smaller the cross-sectional area of an artery, but the greater the total cross-sectional area of the arterial system, so the blood flows in the arterial system further away from the heart.
Veins are blood vessels that carry blood from tissues back to the heart. These blood vessels originate from capillaries. The blood flow from the capillaries into the first vascular system is called the venules. The venules collect blood from the large veins. From there, the blood is returned to the heart.
The capillaries are a system of microvasculature connecting the arterioles and the venules. The capillary wall is composed of a layer of endothelial cells, between these cells there are small holes for the metabolism of cells and blood to be carried out. The vascular system in the human body has about 10,000 million capillaries with a total exchange area of about 500 - 700 m2.
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