Arteriovenous oxygen difference

The arteriovenous oxygen difference, or a-vO₂ diff, is the difference in the oxygen content of the blood between the arterial blood and the venous blood. It is an indication of how much oxygen is removed from the blood in capillaries as the blood circulates in the body. The a-vO₂ diff and cardiac output are the main factors that allow variation in the body's total oxygen consumption, and are important in measuring VO₂. The a-vO₂ diff is usually measured in millilitres of oxygen per 100 millilitres of blood (mL/100 mL).