Question

Which of these is a branch of the right coronary artery, and if blocked, could cause a myocardial infarction (lack of oxygen, and therefore heart attack) in the lateral right side of the heart?

Answer 1

Answer: Pulmonary veins

Explanation:

Highly oxygenated blood returning from the pulmonary capillaries in the lungs passes through a series of vessels that join together to form the pulmonary veins—the only post-natal veins in the body that carry highly oxygenated blood. The pulmonary veins conduct blood into the left atrium, which pumps the blood into the left ventricle, which in turn pumps oxygenated blood into the aorta and on to the many branches of the systemic circuit.

In this case, oxygen and nutrients exit the systemic capillaries to be used by the cells in their metabolic processes, and carbon dioxide and waste products will enter the blood.