Which vessels return systemic venous blood to the right atrium?

• A. Pulmonary arteries
• B. Superior and inferior vena cava
• C. Aorta
• D. Pulmonary veins

Answer: (B)

When blood from the body returns to the heart, it does so through the large veins that drain into the right atrium. The superior vena cava collects blood from above the diaphragm (head, neck, arms), while the inferior vena cava collects blood from below the diaphragm (trunk and legs). Their job is to deliver deoxygenated blood to the right atrium as part of the systemic circulation. The coronary veins also contribute to the right atrium via the coronary sinus, but that’s the heart’s own venous drainage rather than systemic return.

In contrast, the pulmonary arteries carry blood away from the heart to the lungs, the aorta carries blood from the heart to the systemic circulation, and the pulmonary veins return oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium.