Knowra Kidney Kidney A kidney is an organ that filters blood, regulates fluid and electrolyte balance, and produces urine. It also helps control blood pressure and supports red blood cell production.
Nephron : The kidney’s microscopic functional unit, which filters blood and modifies the filtrate to form urine. Each kidney contains many nephrons that carry out its filtering work.
Renal cortex : The kidney’s outer region, containing renal corpuscles and much of the nephron tubules. Most initial blood filtration occurs in this outer tissue.
Glomerular filtration rate : An estimate of the volume of fluid filtered by kidney glomeruli per unit time. It summarizes filtration capacity and helps stage chronic kidney disease.
Chronic kidney disease : A lasting reduction in kidney function or evidence of kidney damage, typically present for at least three months. Progressive loss of function can impair filtration and fluid regulation.
Liver : A large organ that processes nutrients, detoxifies substances, and produces bile and essential blood proteins. The liver transforms and synthesizes blood constituents; the kidney filters and excretes wastes.
Glomerulus : A tuft of capillaries where blood pressure drives water and small solutes into the nephron. This is where filtration begins inside each nephron.
Renal medulla : The kidney’s inner region, organized into pyramids containing loops of Henle and collecting ducts. Its structure supports the concentration gradient used to conserve water.
Urinalysis : The laboratory examination of urine for physical, chemical, and microscopic findings. Urine findings can reveal kidney damage, infection, or abnormal filtration.
Acute kidney injury : A rapid decline in kidney function that causes waste products to accumulate in blood. Sudden injury can disrupt filtration over hours or days.
Bladder : A hollow muscular organ that stores urine until urination. The bladder stores urine, while the kidney makes it.
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