The vessels carrying blood away from the heart.
Vessels that carry oxygenated blood from the heart muscle to all parts of the body.
The vessels that carry blood from the aorta to all parts of the body and end in arterioles, which then are connected to the capillaries. The walls of the arteries have an elastic, muscular structure. The inner layer is a smooth lining, the middle layer is composed of elastic membranes and muscle, and the outer walls are tough, fibrous tissues. This structure enables the arteries to withstand the great force of blood being pumped rapidly from the heart. The elastic membranes stretch as the blood flows through, and then the muscular layer contracts; the arteries help pump the blood along and smooth out its flow. All arteries except the pulmonary artery (which carries blood from the right side of the heart to the lungs to receive oxygen) pump oxygen-rich blood. As arteries travel through the body, they branch into smaller vessels. Large arteries, such as the aorta or the carotid arteries in the neck, are about as thick as a finger. Medium arteries, such as the brachial artery that carries blood into the arm, are pencil-thin. Smaller branches are called arterioles, and the finest arterial vessels are known as capillaries. As the vessels become smaller and more delicate, the pressure of the blood flow decreases and evens out.
Vessels which convey oxygenated blood away from the heart to the tissues of the body, limbs and internal organs. In the case of most arteries the blood has been purified by passing through the lungs, and is consequently bright red in colour; but in the pulmonary arteries, which convey the blood to the lungs, it is deoxygenated, dark, and like the blood in veins.
Thick-walled, muscular, flexible tubes that carry oxygenated blood away from the heart to the arterioles.
Vessels that carry blood away from the heart to the tissues of the body.
The vasculature responsible for conveying blood away from the cardiac organ.