CHAPTER OUTLINE
■ GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
Hematocrit
Blood Color
Blood Volume
Blood pH
■ LEUKOCYTES
Classification and Appearance
Life Span and Numbers
Function
Diagnostic Procedures
■ ERYTHROCYTES
Hemoglobin and Its Forms
Erythropoiesis
Numbers
Shape
Size
Erythrocyte Indices
Life Span
■ FATE OF ERYTHROCYTES
■ IRON METABOLISM
■ ANEMIA AND POLYCYTHEMIA
■ HEMOSTASIS: PREVENTION OF BLOOD LOSS
Hemostatic Components
Platelet Reactions
Clot Formation (Blood Coagulation)
Fibrin Degradation
■ PREVENTION OF BLOOD.COAGULATION
Prevention in Normal Circulation
Prevention in Withdrawn Blood
■ TESTS FOR BLOOD.COAGULATION
Coagulation Defects
Species Differences
■ PLASMA AND ITS COMPOSITION
Plasma Proteins
Other Plasma Constituents
The blood vascular system evolved to provide for the transport of nutrients to the cells after they had become so numerous and so distant from the surface that diffusion was no longer adequate.
The circulating medium came to be known as blood. The functions of blood are generally related to transport (e.g., nutrients, oxygen, carbon dioxide, waste products, hormones, heat, and immune bodies). There are additional functions of blood relating to its role in maintaining fluid balance and pH equilibrium in the body. Because blood must be maintained in a closed system for transport efficiency, it is provided with a mechanism for preventing blood loss if the normally closed system is opened.
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