Urinary System Flashcards
Most important excretory organs.
Kidneys
They eliminate nitrogenous waste, water, electrolytes, toxins, and drugs.
Kidneys
Secretes small amounts of nitrogen compounds, water, and electrolytes.
Sweat glands
Eliminates carbon dioxide and water.
Lungs
Excrete digestive wastes, bile pigments, and other minerals.
Intestines
Whereas the skin, lungs, and intestines eliminate waste, only the ___ can fine-tune the excretion of water and electrolytes to maintain the normal volume and composition of body fluids.
kidneys
Kidneys, sweat glands, lungs, and intestines.
4 organs of excretion
Makes urine, temporarily stores it, and finally eliminates it from the body.
Urinary system
Two ureters, one urinary bladder, and one urethra are the three major ___ of the ___ system.
organs
urinary
Tubes that conduct urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder.
Ureters (yer-et-ters)
Acts as a temporary reservoir; it receives urine from the ureters and stores the urine until it can be eliminated.
Urinary bladder
A tube that conducts urine from the bladder to the outside for elimination.
Urethra (yer-reeth-rah)
(A) Organs of the urinary system. (B) Internal structure of a kidney.
Refers to the kidney.
Renal (ree-null)
Renal physiology refers to the study of ___ function.
kidney
Refers to the study of kidney function. The term comes from the nephron unit—the unit in the kidney that makes urine.
Nephrology (nep-pharl-oh-jee)
The study of the urinary system.
Urology
Located high on the posterior wall of the abdominal cavity, behind the parietal peritoneum (retroperitoneal).
Kidneys
Cushioned and protected by the renal fascia, adipose tissue pads, and lower rib cage.
Kidneys
A reddish-brown, beanlike structure enclosed in a tough fibrous capsule.
Kidneys
Each is about 4 inches (10 cm) long, 2 inches (5 cm) wide, and 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick.
Kidney
The indentation of the bean-shaped kidney.
Hilus
It is the point at which the blood vessels, ureter, and nerves enter and exit the kidney.
Hilus
A kidney has ___ distinct regions.
3
A kidney has three distinct regions: the renal ___, the renal ___, and the renal ___.
cortex
medulla
pelvis
The lighter, outer region of the kidney.
Renal cortex
The darker triangular structure located deeper within the kidney.
Renal medulla
The renal medulla forms these striped, cone-shaped regions.
Renal pyramids
Each pyramid is separated by a renal ___, an extension of the outer renal cortex.
column
The lower ends of the pyramids point toward the renal ___.
pelvis
A basin that collects the urine made by the kidney and helps form the upper end of the ureter.
Renal pelvis
The cuplike edges of the renal pelvis closest to the pyramids.
Calyxes (cal-luck-ses)
Collects the urine formed in the kidney.
Calyxes (cal-luck-ses)
Blood is brought to the kidney by the renal ___, which arises from the abdominal ___.
artery
aorta
Deliver a large amount of blood to the kidneys, averaging about 20% to 25% of the cardiac output.
Renal arteries
After entering the kidney, the renal artery branches into a series of smaller and smaller arteries, which deliver blood to the ___ units.
nephron (nef-ron)
The urine-making structures of the kidney.
Nephron units (nef-ron)
Blood leaves the kidney through a series of ___ that finally merge to form the renal ___.
veins
vein
The renal vein empties into this.
Inferior vena cava
Travel with the renal blood vessels to the kidney.
Renal nerves
Primarily sympathetic nerves that help control blood flow to the kidney and regulate the release of a blood pressure-regulating enzyme.
Renal nerves
In general, the kidneys cleanse the blood of ___ products, help regulate the ___ and composition of body fluids, and help regulate the ___ of body fluids.
waste
volume
pH
Excrete nitrogenous waste such as urea, uric acid, ammonia, and creatinine.
Kidneys
Urea, uric acid, ammonia, and creatinine.
Nitrogenous waste
Regulates blood volume by determining the amount of water excreted.
Kidneys
Helps regulate the electrolyte content of the blood.
Kidneys
Play a major role in the regulation of acid-base balance (blood pH) by controlling the excretion of hydrogen ions (H+).
Kidneys
Play a role in the long-term regulation of blood pressure.
Kidneys
Play a role in the regulation of red blood cell production through the secretion of erythropoietin.
Kidney
The functional unit, or urine-making unit, of the kidney.
Nephron unit (nef-ron)
Each kidney contains about 1 million of these.
Nephron units (nef-ron)
True or false: the number of nephron units does not increase after birth and they cannot be replaced if damaged.
True
Each nephron unit has ___ parts.
2
Each nephron unit has two parts: a tubular component (renal ___) and a vascular component (___ ___).
tubules (too-bee-ools)
blood vessels
Consist of a number of tubular structures.
Renal tubules
A C-shaped structure that partially surrounds a cluster of filtering capillaries.
Glomerular capsule (gla-mere-ya-ler)
Bowman capsule:
glomerular capsule (gla-mere-ya-ler).
The Nephron Unit: Tubular and Vascular Structures.
Bowman capsule extends from the glomerulus as a highly coiled tubule called the ___ ___ tubule.
proximal convoluted
Dips toward the renal pelvis to form a hairpin-shaped structure called the loop of Henle.
Proximal convoluted tubule
Contains a descending and ascending limb.
Loop of Henle
Becomes the distal convoluted tubule.
Ascending limb
The distal convoluted tubules of several nephron units empty into a ___ duct.
collecting
Run through the renal medulla to the calyx of the renal pelvis.
Collecting ducts
Urine is formed and modified in these tubules.
Collecting ducts
The renal artery branches into smaller blood vessels that eventually form the ___ arteriole.
afferent (a-fer-ent)
Branches into a cluster, or tuft, of capillaries called a glomerulus.
Afferent arteriole (a-fer-ent)
Sits in Bowman capsule and exits from Bowman capsule as the efferent arteriole.
Glomerulus (gla-mere-you-lus)
Forms a second capillary network called the peritubular capillaries.
Efferent arteriole (ef-er-ent)
Surround the renal tubules and empty their blood into the venules, larger veins and, finally, into the renal vein.
Peritubular capillaries
Formed in the nephron units as water and dissolved substances move between the vascular and tubular structures.
Urine
Glomerular filtration, tubular reabsorption, and tubular secretion.
Urine formation
Urine formation begins here.
Glomerulus (gla-mere-you-lus) and Bowman capsule
Glomerular ___ causes water and dissolved substances to move from the glomerulus into Bowman capsule.
filtration
About 20% of the blood that flows through the glomeruli is filtered into the ___; the remaining 80% of the blood leaves the glomeruli by the ___ arterioles and continues into the ___ capillaries.
tubules (too-bee-oolz)
efferent (ef-er-ent)
peritubular
Occurs when the pressure on one side of a membrane is greater than the pressure on the opposite side.
Filteration
Blood pressure in the glomerulus is ___ than the pressure in Bowman capsule. This pressure difference provides the driving force for filtration. This pressure difference is called the ___ filtration pressure.
higher
glomerular (gla-mere-you-lar)
If blood pressure suddenly ___, as in shock, glomerular filtration pressure ___, thereby ___ urinary output.
declines
decreases
reducing
The wall of the ___ contains pores and acts like a sieve or a strainer.
glomerulus (gla-mere-you-lus)
True or false: the size of the pores determines which substances can move across the wall from the glomerulus into Bowman capsule.
True
Small substances such as water, sodium, potassium, chloride, glucose, uric acid, and creatinine move through the ___ very easily. These substances are filtered in proportion to their plasma concentration. In other words, if the concentration of a particular substance in the plasma is ___, much of that substance is filtered.
pores
high
Large molecules such as red blood cells and large proteins cannot fit through the ___ and therefore remain within the ___.
pores
glomerulus (gla-mere-you-lus)
The water and the dissolved substances filtered into Bowman capsule.
Glomerular filtrate (gla-mere-you-lar)
Glomerular filtrate is protein-free and is thus called an ___.
ultrafiltrate
The presence of protein (proteinuria) in the urine indicates abnormally large ___ in the glomerulus.
holes
The Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System.
Organs of the Urinary Tract: Ureters, Bladder, and Urethra (Your “Plumbing”).
