Consider the statement "The right ventricle transports oxygenated blood to the lungs." In terms of human cardiac physiology, is this statement correct or incorrect?

Introduction / Context:
The human heart has four chambers that work together to circulate blood through the lungs and the rest of the body. Knowing which chambers carry oxygenated or deoxygenated blood is a core concept in cardiovascular physiology. The statement in this question claims that the right ventricle transports oxygenated blood to the lungs. Your task is to decide whether this statement is correct or incorrect based on the actual direction and type of blood flow in the heart.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The chamber in focus is the right ventricle.

• The destination mentioned is the lungs.

• The statement claims that the blood carried is oxygenated.

• Normal postnatal human circulation is assumed, not fetal circulation or pathological conditions.

Concept / Approach:
In normal adult circulation, the right side of the heart deals with deoxygenated blood and the left side with oxygenated blood. Deoxygenated blood from the body returns via the venae cavae to the right atrium, flows into the right ventricle, and is then pumped through the pulmonary artery to the lungs. In the lungs, blood releases carbon dioxide and picks up oxygen, becoming oxygenated. This oxygenated blood then returns through the pulmonary veins to the left atrium, passes into the left ventricle, and is pumped to the body through the aorta. Therefore, the right ventricle carries deoxygenated blood to the lungs, not oxygenated blood.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Trace the flow of blood from the body: deoxygenated blood enters the right atrium via the superior and inferior venae cavae. Step 2: From the right atrium, this deoxygenated blood passes through the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle. Step 3: When the right ventricle contracts, it pumps this deoxygenated blood through the pulmonary valve into the pulmonary artery and onward to the lungs. Step 4: In the lungs, gas exchange occurs; blood loses carbon dioxide and gains oxygen, becoming oxygenated. Step 5: Oxygenated blood then returns to the left atrium via pulmonary veins, enters the left ventricle, and is pumped out to the systemic circulation. Step 6: The statement in the question claims that the right ventricle transports oxygenated blood to the lungs, which reverses the truth about the type of blood carried. Step 7: Therefore, the correct evaluation is that the statement is incorrect because the right ventricle carries deoxygenated blood to the lungs for oxygenation.

Verification / Alternative check:
Standard heart diagrams use color coding, with blue for deoxygenated blood on the right side and red for oxygenated blood on the left side. The right ventricle and pulmonary artery are shown in blue, indicating deoxygenated blood traveling to the lungs. Text descriptions of pulmonary circulation explicitly state that the right ventricle pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs. Only after passing through the lungs does blood become oxygenated and return to the left side of the heart. These consistent details in textbooks and atlases verify that the statement in the question is incorrect.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

Correct – the right ventricle pumps fully oxygenated blood to the body: This is actually the role of the left ventricle, not the right ventricle.

Correct – both ventricles always carry only oxygenated blood: This is false, since the right ventricle carries deoxygenated blood.

Correct only before birth: Even in the fetus, the right ventricle does not routinely pump fully oxygenated blood to the lungs because fetal circulation bypasses much of the pulmonary circuit.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes mix up left and right sides when looking at heart diagrams, because diagrams are usually drawn as if facing the person, making the left side of the diagram correspond to the right side of the body. Another source of confusion is the name pulmonary artery, which carries deoxygenated blood, even though most arteries carry oxygenated blood. To avoid errors, remember the rule that right side equals deoxygenated blood to the lungs, and left side equals oxygenated blood to the body.

Final Answer:
The statement is incorrect, because the right ventricle actually pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs for oxygenation.