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The average pressure pumped through the aorta is about 120mmHg during systole. The average pressure pumped through the pulmonary artery is only 9-18mmHg. The reason for this is simply because of the volume of blood, the resistance to flow by the different pathways they take and so on. But the main point is that to maintain functional integrity and not hypertrophy or cause aneurysm, the aorta must be much thicker with a pressure that great.

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Does vena cava or aorta have thicker walls?

The aorta has thicker walls as it is an artery not vein.


What vessel is the blood pumped from the left ventricle?

Blood is pumped by both the left and right ventricles. Blood pumped by the right ventricle is to the lungs only while the left ventricle pumps to the rest of the body. This is why the walls of the left ventricle are significantly thicker than the walls of the right.


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The aorta has significantly thicker walls than the superior and inferior venae cavae as the aorta is an artery that must respond to significant intraluminal pressures whereas the venae cavae are veins that have minimal intraluminal pressure.


What is the significance of the difference in thickness between the aorta and the pulmonary trunk?

To put it simply: The blood in the aorta has to go all around the body. Blood in the pulmonary trunk has to go all around the lungs. The body is, obviously, larger than the lungs. This means blood going around the body needs to be "pushed" more. This is because there is more resistance. For example, it's harder to push a car for 1 mile, then it is to push it 1 metre. Because the blood has to be pushed more, the heart (left ventricle) pumps it out at a higher pressure. Similarly, because the blood going around the lungs doesn't need to go so far, the heart (right ventricle) pumps it out at a lower pressure. Because the blood in the aorta is at higher pressure than the pulmonary trunk, it needs to have thicker walls. For example a fire hose is thicker than a garden hose because it needs to transport water at a higher pressure. The aorta contains large amount of smooth muscle and elastic tissue to help it cope with the high blood pressure.


What is the difference between the walls of the renal artery and the hilus region?

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The arterial walls are thicker because they need to withstand the pressure coming from the heart.


What is the thickness of an artery's walls?

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Is the wall of an artery thicker than that of a vein?

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The tunica media is the thickest layer of of an artery


In comparing a parallel artery and vein you would find what?

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Why is the pulmonary artery a vessel not a vein?

The pulmonary artery carries deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs for oxygenation, while veins typically carry deoxygenated blood back to the heart. The pulmonary artery is specifically structured to withstand high pressure from the heart's pumping action as it sends blood to the lungs, unlike veins that have thinner walls and lower pressure.