Great vessels

Looks like

The large pipes at the top of the heart: the aorta, the pulmonary trunk and the two great veins.

What it does

Carry all blood out of and back into the heart.

Keeping it well

Blood pressure control above all; smoking and high pressure widen and weaken the aorta.

Its parts

• Aorta
• Brachiocephalic trunk
• Subclavian arteries
• Pulmonary trunk & arteries
• Pulmonary veins
• Superior vena cava
• Inferior vena cava (thoracic part)
• Azygos & hemiazygos veins
• Ligamentum arteriosum

Related conditions

• Aortic aneurysm
• Aortic dissection
• Chronic venous insufficiency
• Clotting disorders (thrombophilia & APS)
• Congenital heart defects
• Deep vein thrombosis
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Hypothermia & frostbite
• Kawasaki disease
• Marfan syndrome & connective tissue disorders
• Metabolic syndrome
• Orthostatic hypotension & POTS
• Peripheral artery disease
• Phaeochromocytoma & hyperaldosteronism
• Pre-eclampsia
• Pulmonary embolism
• Pulmonary hypertension
• Raynaud's phenomenon
• Sepsis
• Shock (circulatory failure)
• Takayasu arteritis
• Thoracic outlet syndrome
• Turner syndrome
• Varicose veins
• Vasculitis (GCA & others)