Blood through the vessels of the human body moves continuously. The heart, due to its structure, clearly separates it into arterial and venous. They should not mix normally. Sometimes difficult situations arise, for example, with bleeding or fluid intake from a vessel, in which it is necessary to accurately determine its type. This article will tell how arterial blood differs from venous. And it’s worth starting with anatomy.
The structure of the circulatory system
The four-chamber structure of the heart helps to distinguish between arterial and venous fluids. Thus, they do not mix, which is necessary for the adequate functioning of the body.
There are 2 circles of blood circulation: small and large. Thanks to the first, blood passes through the capillaries of the lungs, enriched with oxygen in the alveoli, becoming arterial. Then she goes to the heart, which with the help of the powerful walls of the left ventricle pushes her into a large circle through the aorta.
After the body tissues have taken all the nutrients from the capillaries, the blood becomes venous and through the vessels of the same name in a large circle returns to the heart, which directs it through the pulmonary arteries into the small one, in order to saturate it with oxygen again.
So what is the difference between arterial blood and venous? What are their features?
Arterial
First of all, this species differs from another in composition. The main function of the blood is the delivery of oxygen to organs and tissues. The process takes place in the capillaries - the smallest vessels. In exchange for oxygen, the cells give off carbon dioxide.
In addition to the most important chemical element for all living things, such blood is rich in nutrients that are absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract and enter the venous. Further, the liver blocks her path. All substances from the gastrointestinal tract should be filtered. Dangerous and poisonous ones remain there, and pure venous blood gets the right to pass through the lungs and transform into arterial. It delivers nutrients to organ cells in need of nutrition.
Another distinguishing feature of this type of blood is color. It has a bright scarlet color. The reason is hemoglobin. It has a different composition. So what is the difference between hemoglobin in arterial and venous blood? This is a special protein that can carry oxygen. The connection with it gives the liquid a bright scarlet color.
Another important sign of how arterial blood differs from venous blood is the nature of the movement through the vessels. This directly depends on the force with which it is expelled from the heart into a large circle, as well as on the structure of the arterial wall. They are strong, elastic. Therefore, during an injury, the contents of the vessel are poured out by a strong pulsating stream.
It is very difficult to compress the arteries using soft tissue. Therefore, to stop blood loss, there are points where the vessels are adjacent as close to the bone structures as possible. It is necessary to firmly press the artery to the bone structure located above the site of damage, since the arteries carry blood from top to bottom. It must be remembered that most arteries are deep, for their clamping you need to make a lot of effort.
Venous
This species has a darker, deep burgundy color with a slight bluish tint. This color gives her hemoglobin. Arterial to the maximum gave oxygen to the tissues of the body. But a holy place is never empty. Therefore, venous blood differs from arterial blood by the presence in hemoglobin of another substance - carbon dioxide. This forms carboxyhemoglobin. It just stains the substance in a dark red hue.
After the transfer of nutrients, tissues give up their metabolic products, which must be removed from the body. Such substances include urea, creatinine, uric acid and others. Because of their high content in comparison with arterial blood, it is venous that is used in laboratory studies for the qualitative determination of a particular indicator.
Venous blood differs from arterial blood in that it will leak out more systematically if the vessel is damaged. It is much easier to stop this type of bleeding, especially with superficial injury. It is enough to apply a pressure bandage. This difference in vessel movement is explained by the structure of the vein wall. She is very malleable, easy to squeeze to soft tissues such as muscles.
Value
Due to its differences, opposite characteristics, arterial and venous blood provide the internal constancy of the body - homeostasis. For good health, you need to keep yourself in good shape and maintain complete balance. Otherwise, if any deviations occur, the condition will be violated and the person will fall ill.
What is the difference between arterial and venous blood? After reading the article, such a question should not bother a person. Based on the knowledge gained, it is easy to determine the type of bleeding and save more than one life.