Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Intermediate Practice Exam

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Study for the EMT Intermediate Exam. Access detailed flashcards and multiple-choice questions that come with hints and explanations. Prepare comprehensively for your EMT certification!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

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What is the primary role of pulmonary circulation?

Distributing nutrients to tissues
Ensuring blood gets reoxygenated
Transporting carbon dioxide to the lungs
Regulating blood pressure

The correct answer is: Ensuring blood gets reoxygenated

The primary role of pulmonary circulation is to ensure that blood is reoxygenated. In this circulatory pathway, deoxygenated blood flows from the right side of the heart to the lungs via the pulmonary arteries. Within the lungs, carbon dioxide is exchanged for oxygen through the alveoli. This gas exchange allows the blood to become oxygenated before it returns to the left side of the heart through the pulmonary veins. This oxygen-rich blood is then pumped throughout the body to supply tissues and organs with the necessary oxygen for cellular metabolism. While the other options touch on important aspects of the cardiovascular system, they do not reflect the primary function of pulmonary circulation. Distributing nutrients to tissues relates more to systemic circulation, which is responsible for delivering oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Transporting carbon dioxide to the lungs is part of the broader function of pulmonary circulation but isn’t the primary role, as reoxygenation is a more significant and direct outcome of this circuit. Regulating blood pressure is a function of the cardiovascular system as a whole but is not the primary purpose of pulmonary circulation specifically.