The document summarizes key aspects of the circulatory system, including its components and functions. It describes the structure and types of blood cells, such as red blood cells, which carry oxygen, and platelets, which promote clotting. It also discusses immune functions of the lymphatic system and common disorders like anemia. Assessment techniques for analyzing blood and bone marrow are presented, along with potential issues and innovations in blood transfusion and antibody treatments.

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CHAPTER 11
CIRCULATORY SYSTEM

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Structure and Function
• Structure of the circulatory system
– Includes the blood and lymph that move
through the body
• Function of the circulatory system
– Both blood and lymph are tissues that
maintain homeostasis and give the body
immunity

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Blood
• Body contains approximately 4 to 5 liters of
blood, making up about 8% of the body’s
weight
• Functions include:
– Transporting nutrients, oxygen, and hormones
– Removing metabolic wastes and carbon dioxide
– Providing immunity through antibodies
– Maintaining body temperature and electrolyte
balance
– Clotting to prevent bleeding from a wound

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Red Blood Cells
(Erythrocytes)
• Erythrocytes contain a protein called
hemoglobin that carries oxygen to all cells
and removes carbon dioxide
• Each red blood cell lives only 90 to 120 days
• New cells are manufactured by the red
marrow or myeloid tissue in bones
• The liver and spleen remove dead red blood
cells

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White Blood Cells
(Leukocytes)
• White blood cells remove foreign particles,
fight infection, and help prevent disease
• There are fewer white blood cells than red
• White blood cells are larger than red
• Leukocytes live about 9 days
• Pus consists of white blood cells mixed with
bacteria

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Five Types of White Blood
Cells
• Neutrophils
• Basophils
• Eosinophils
• Lymphocytes
• Monocytes

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Platelets (Thrombocytes)
• Smallest blood cells
• Platelets promote clotting to prevent
blood loss
• Platelets can form a plug to seal small
vessels by themselves or start the
clotting process
• Produced in red bone marrow
• Live about 5 to 9 days

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Plasma
• A pale yellow liquid that remains when
elements are removed from blood
• Whole blood is 55% plasma
• Plasma is 90% water and approximately 10%
proteins
• It contains nutrients, electrolytes, oxygen,
enzymes, hormones, and wastes
• Helps fight infection and assists in the clotting
(coagulation) of blood

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Blood Typing
• A person’s blood type is an inherited
characteristic of the blood
• A blood type is determined by the
antigens located on the surface of the
red blood cell
• Clumping of incompatible cells blocks
blood vessels and may cause death

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Table 11-2 Blood Types

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Lymph and Lymphatic
Tissue
• Two important functions
– The process of immunity
– Maintaining the body’s fluid balance
• Lymph is a watery substance formed
from fluid that filters into the body tissue
or interstitially
• Lymphatic tissues consist of the tonsils,
thymus, spleen, nodes, and the lymph
vessels

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Immunity
• Immune response takes on two forms
– As a barrier of the skin, mucous
membranes, tears, and the leukocytes
– In leukocytes antibodies are formed in
response to antigens or foreign materials
that enter the body
• May be a localized or systemic reaction
• Acquired and/or inherited immunity

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Assessment Techniques
• Hemoglobin (Hgb) test measures the amount
of oxygen-carrying ability of the blood
• Hematocrit (Hct) measures the volume of
erythrocytes in the blood
• Sedimentation rates measure how long it
takes for erythrocytes in the blood to settle to
the bottom of a container
• Reticulocyte studies measure the number of
immature red blood cells

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Assessment Techniques
(continued)
• Red blood cell (RBC) counts determine the
number of circulating red blood cells in 1 mm3
of blood
• Platelet or thrombocyte counts measure the
number of platelets in 1 mm3
of blood to
determine clotting ability
• Aspiration biopsy cytology (ABC) studies
examine bone marrow from the iliac crest of
the hip

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System
• Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
– Dysfunction of the immune system caused by a
virus
• Allergy
– Hypersensitive response by the immune system to
an outside substance
• Anemia
– The blood has an inadequate amount of
hemoglobin, red blood cells, or both

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System (continued)
• Autoimmune
– Conditions in which the immune system of the
body turns against itself
• Elephantiasis
– A massive accumulation of lymphatic fluid in body
tissues, causing an abnormally large growth of
tissue or hypertrophy
• Erythroblastosis fetalis
– A condition in an unborn baby in which the mother
forms antibodies against the antigens in the baby’s
blood

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System (continued)
• Hemophilia
– A rare sex-linked genetic blood disease in which
the blood is missing a clotting factor
• Hepatitis
– A viral infection of the blood
• Hodgkin’s disease
– A malignant cancer of the lymph system

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System (continued)
• Leukemia
– Also called blood cancer, is an abnormal
malignant increase in the number and longevity of
white blood cells
• Lymphosarcoma
– Is a group of malignant cancers of lymph tissues
other than Hodgkin's disease
• Polycythemia
– An abnormal increase in the number of blood
cells, making the blood thicker and slower flowing

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System (continued)
• Septicemia
– Called blood poisoning, is an infection that occurs
when pathogens enter the blood
• Sickle cell anemia
– A genetic condition that results in malformed red
blood cells
• Splenomegaly
– An enlargement of the spleen caused by an acute
infection such as mononucleosis or anemia

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Disorders of the Circulatory
System (continued)
• Thalassemia
– One of the most common genetic blood disorders
• Thrombocytopenia
– A decrease in the number of platelets in the blood
• Thrombosis
– A condition in which a blood clot, called a
thrombus, forms in the blood vessels

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Issues and Innovations
• Transfusion
– Risks
– Autologous transfusions
– Platelet donations
• Interferon
– Prevention of viral diseases
• Monoclonal antibodies
– Used in organ transplants, against autoimmune
disease, and to diagnose certain diseases