Which vessel carries deoxygenated blood from the body back to the right atrium?

• A. Aorta
• B. Vena Cava
• C. Pulmonary Artery
• D. Pulmonary Vein

Answer: (B)

Systemic venous return delivers deoxygenated blood from the body's tissues back to the heart’s right atrium. The large vessels that do this are the superior vena cava, which collects blood from the upper body, and the inferior vena cava, which collects blood from the lower body. From the right atrium, blood moves to the right ventricle and then to the lungs via the pulmonary artery for oxygenation. The aorta carries oxygenated blood away from the left ventricle to the body, the pulmonary artery carries blood to the lungs, and the pulmonary vein returns oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium. So, the vessel that returns deoxygenated blood from the body to the right atrium is the vena cava.