What is the path that blood follows through body beginning at heart?

Path of Blood Flow Through the Body Starting from the Heart:

The path that blood follows through the body beginning at the heart is known as the systemic circulation. Here's a detailed overview of the route that oxygenated blood takes as it leaves the heart and circulates throughout the body to deliver oxygen and nutrients to tissues:

1. Left Atrium: The journey begins in the left atrium, one of the four chambers of the heart. Oxygen-rich blood returning from the lungs via the pulmonary veins enters the left atrium.

2. Left Atrioventricular (Mitral) Valve: From the left atrium, blood flows through the left atrioventricular valve, also known as the mitral valve, into the left ventricle.

3. Left Ventricle: The left ventricle contracts, generating enough pressure to pump the oxygenated blood out of the heart and into the systemic circulation.

4. Aortic Valve: Blood is ejected through the aortic valve, which is the main artery that originates from the left ventricle. The aortic valve ensures that blood flows in the forward direction only.

5. Aorta: The blood enters the aorta, the largest artery in the body. The aorta carries the oxygenated blood away from the heart.

6. Arteries: As the aorta branches out, it gives rise to smaller arteries that deliver blood to various organs, tissues, and body parts.

7. Arterioles: The arteries further divide into smaller vessels called arterioles. Arterioles regulate the flow of blood into the capillary beds.

8. Capillaries: Capillaries are the smallest blood vessels where the exchange of oxygen and waste products occurs. Oxygen and nutrients from the blood diffuse into the surrounding tissues, while carbon dioxide and other waste products diffuse in the opposite direction.

9. Venules: The blood collects in tiny venules, which are formed by the merging of capillaries. Venules carry the deoxygenated blood away from the tissues.

10. Veins: Venules converge to form larger veins. Veins carry the deoxygenated blood back towards the heart.

11. Superior Vena Cava and Inferior Vena Cava: The blood from the upper part of the body enters the superior vena cava, while blood from the lower part enters the inferior vena cava. These two main veins deliver the deoxygenated blood to the right atrium of the heart.

12. Right Atrium: The deoxygenated blood enters the right atrium, completing the systemic circulation and beginning the pulmonary circulation.

From the right atrium, blood will then flow into the right ventricle, then to the lungs for oxygenation, before returning to the heart via the pulmonary veins to complete the pulmonary circulation and start the systemic circulation again. This continuous cycle ensures that oxygen and nutrients are delivered to all body tissues while waste products are removed.