ovascular system, and the lymph flows because of a pressure gradient which comes from external sources (Applegate, 2000, 289). Contractions of skeletal muscle, respiratory movements, and contraction of the smooth muscle within the walls of the lymphatic vessels cause the pressure gradient. Lymph movement is sporadic and much slower than the movement of blood through the blood vessels.
35.8 The terminal duct draining most of the body is the thoracic duct (Applegate, 2000, 289).
35.9 The cisterni chyli is the name given to the beginning of the thoracic duct (Applegate, 2000, 288). It collects lymph from two lumbar trunks which drain the lower limbs, and from the intestinal trunk that drains the digestive organs.
35.10 Lymph collected from the small intestine by the lacteals contains fat and fat-soluble vitamins, so has a milky appearance because of the fat content(Applegate, 2000, 281). This lymph is known as chyle. Because the cisterni chyli receives lymph from the digestive system, it will appear more milky than the lymph from other areas of the body and in the general lymphatic stream.
35.11 The right lymphatic duct drains the upper right quadrant of the body, including the right side of the head and neck, the right upper extremity, and the right side of the thorax (Applegate, 2000, 288).
35.13 Lymph nodes function to filter and cleanse the lymph before it enters the bloodstream, and to destroy pathogenic agents (Applegate, 2000, 290). Damaged cells, cancerous cells, infectious agents, and cellular debris is caught in the mesh in the nodes. Lymphocytes in the node act against cancerous cells, bacteria, and viruses to destroy them. Macrophages engulf and destroy pathogens, damaged cells, and cellular debris.
35.14 After a radical mastectomy, the arm swells because of the build up of lymphatic fluid (Applegate, 2000, 288). During the procedure, the aux
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