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what is meant by pulmonary vein and pulmonary artery?
Pulmonary veins are those veins that carry blood from lungs and pour it into the heat’s  left atrium. The major pulmonary vein emerge from lungs and branches out immediately into right and left pulmonary veins. The right pulmonary veins collect blood from the right lung and vice versa
 One of the special characteristics of these veins is that pulmonary veins are the only veins that perform the function of transporting oxygenated blood.But the pulmonary system of veins works differently. In this system, de-oxygenated blood is transported to lungs via arteries whereas; oxygenated blood is transported with the help of veins into the heart. This makes the pulmonary veins the only veins to transport oxygenated blood. When the blood goes into the heart, it undergoes series of steps. Firstly, the heart accepts the blood from superior and the inferior vena cavae in the chamber termed as right atrium. After this the blood from right atrium flows into right ventricle. The right ventricles then contract to pass on the blood via pulmonary artery inside the lungs. From lungs, the blood flows into left atrium via pulmonary veins.The most important function of pulmonary veins is to transport oxygen rich blood into the heart. After the blood is carried to various parts of our body via arteries, it looses oxygen and turns into de-oxygenated blood The pulmonary veins have been said to hold the key to the proper functioning of our circulatory and cardiovascular system.

 Arteries are vessels that carry blood away from the heart. The pulmonary artery transports blood from the heart to the lungs. While most major arteries branch off from the aorta, the main pulmonary artery extends from the right ventricle of the heart and branches into left and right pulmonary arteries. The left and right pulmonary arteries extend to the left lung and right lungs.

The pulmonary arteries are unique in that unlike most arteries which carry oxygenated blood to other parts of the body, the pulmonary arteries carry de-oxygenated blood to the lungs. After picking up oxygen, the oxygen rich blood is returned to the heart via the pulmonary veins.

 


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