Blood vessel
The
blood vessels are part of the
circulatory system and function to transport
blood throughout the body.
Types
\n*Arteries\n**Aorta (the largest artery, carries blood out of the heart)\n*Arterioles\n*Capillaries (the smallest blood vessels)\n*Venules\n*Veins\n**Venae cavae (the 2 largest veins, carry blood into the heart)
Glossary
\n*Vasoconstriction is when blood vessels constrict (become narrower, smaller in cross-sectional area) by contracting the smooth muscle in the vessel walls.\n**A vasoconstrictor is any drug that acts to constrict blood vessels. Many vasoconstrictors act on specific receptors, such as vasopressin receptors or adrenoreceptors.\nVasoconstrictors are used to increase blood pressure or to reduce local blood flow. \n*Vasodilation is when blood vessels dilate (become wider) by relaxing the smooth muscle in the vessel walls.\n**Vasodilators are drugs that work to dilate blood vessels.
See also
\n*anatomy\n*human anatomy\n*cardiovascular system\n*vascular resistance\n*endothelium\n*endothelium-derived relaxing factor\n*anastomosis\n*atherosclerosis\n*vasculitis (inflammation of blood vessels)\n*angiogenesis (formation of blood vessels)
\n\n\n\n\nCategory:Cardiovascular system
