Which vessel returns deoxygenated blood to the right atrium?

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

Answer: (B)

Blood returning from the body to the heart is deoxygenated and enters the right atrium through the vena cavae. The superior vena cava drains the upper body and the inferior vena cava drains the lower body, delivering this deoxygenated blood into the right atrium. By contrast, the pulmonary veins bring oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium, the aorta carries oxygenated blood away from the left ventricle to the body, and the pulmonary artery carries deoxygenated blood from the right ventricle to the lungs, not back to the right atrium.