Library · Anatomy
Aorta
Make it clearer
The aorta is the largest blood vessel you have and the main artery of the systemic circulation. It is the main avenue the body's streets branch off from.
It leaves the left ventricle, the chamber of the heart that pushes blood out, arches backward, and runs down through the posterior mediastinum, the space between the two lungs. Along the way it delivers oxygenated blood, the blood that has already passed through the lungs and carries oxygen, to the whole body.
Right as it leaves, above the cusps of the aortic valve, it gives off the coronary arteries, the ones that supply the heart itself. And it ends at the level of the fourth lumbar vertebra, where it splits into the two common iliac arteries, one for each leg.
In brief
The aorta is the largest blood vessel in the human body and the main artery of the systemic circulation.
It is the main avenue the body's streets branch off from.
It arises from the left ventricle of the heart, arches backward, descends through the posterior mediastinum, and delivers oxygenated blood to the entire body.
Just above the cusps of the aortic valve it gives off the coronary arteries, and it ends at the level of the L4 vertebra, where it divides into the two common iliac arteries.
Sources (1)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingAnatomy, Thorax, Heart Aorta, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated