Urinary System Terms

Enuresis

Involuntary urination.

Nocturnal enuresis

Bed-wetting; affects 15% to 20% of school-aged children.

Diurnal enuresis

Daytime wetting, which may be caused by a small bladder.

Prolapse

Displacement of an organ or anatomic structure from its normal position (also called ptosis).

Stricture

Abnormal narrowing, such as a urethral stricture.

Urinary incontinence

Inability to control the bladder, causing leakage of urine.

Diuretic

Agent that promotes the formation and excretion of urine.

Hemodialysis (HD)

Procedure that uses a machine to withdraw blood, filter out waste and excess fluid, and return clean blood to the body; used as a kidney replacement therapy when the kidneys stop working.

Peritoneal dialysis

Procedure that uses blood vessels inside the abdominal lining (peritoneum) to filter waste and excess fluid from the blood with the aid of a cleansing solution that contains water, salt, and other additives.

Urinary catheterization

Passage of a tubelike device (catheter) into the urinary bladder to withdraw urine.

Catheter (cath)

Flexible, tubelike device, such as a urinary catheter, for withdrawing or instilling fluids. Derived from the Greek katheter, meaning a thing let down.

Urinal

Receptacle for urine.

Distended

Stretched out (a bladder is distended when filled with urine).

Electrolytes

Minerals in the body, such as sodium and potassium, that carry an electric charge; necessary for normal function and maintained by the kidneys.

Void

To empty or evacuate waste material, especially urine.

AKI

Acute kidney injury

ARF

Acute renal failure

AUR

Acute urinary retention

CKD

Chronic kidney disease

CRF

Chronic renal failure

CUR

Chronic urinary retention

ESKD

End-stage kidney disease

ESRD

End-stage renal disease

OAB

Overactive bladder

PKD

Polycystic kidney disease

UTI

Urinary tract infection

VUR

Vesicoureteral reflux

BUN

Blood urea nitrogen

GFR

Glomerular filtration rate

KUB

Kidneys ureters (and) bladder

SG

Specific gravity

UA

Urinalysis

VCUG

Voiding cystourethrography

cath

Catheterization, catheter; spoken as a whole word (kath)

ESWL

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy

HD

Hemodialysis

kidney

One of two bean-shaped organs located on each side of the vertebral column on the posterior wall of the abdominal cavity covered anteriorly by the parietal peritoneum. Function is to remove waste products from the blood and to aid in maintaining water and electrolyte balances.

nephron

Urine-producing microscopic structure. Approximately $1\text{ million}$ nephrons are located in each kidney.

glomerulus

Cluster of capillaries at the entrance of the nephron where the process of filtering the blood, thereby forming urine, begins; derived from the Latin glomus, meaning ball of thread.

renal pelvis

Funnel-shaped reservoir in the kidney that collects the urine and passes it to the ureter.

hilum

Indentation on the medial side of the kidney where the renal artery, vein, and pelvis are located and the ureter leaves the kidney.

ureters

Two slender tubes, approximately $10$ to $13\text{ inches}$ ($26$ to $33\text{ cm}$) long, that receive the urine from the kidneys and carry it to the posterior portion of the bladder.

urinary bladder

Muscular, hollow organ that temporarily holds the urine. As it fills, the thick, muscular wall becomes thinner, and the organ increases in size; derived from Anglo-Saxon blaeddre, meaning a blister or windbag.

urethra

Lowest part of the urinary tract, through which the urine passes from the urinary bladder to the outside of the body. Approximately $1.5\text{ inches}$ ($3.8\text{ cm}$) long in females and $8\text{ inches}$ ($20\text{ cm}$) long in males.

urinary meatus

Opening through which the urine passes to the outside of the body.

cyst/o

Combining form meaning bladder, sac (refers to the urinary bladder unless otherwise identified).

glomerul/o

Combining form meaning glomerulus.

meat/o

Combining form meaning meatus (opening).

nephr/o

Combining form meaning kidney.

pyel/o

Combining form meaning renal pelvis; derived from the Greek word pyelos, meaning tub-shaped vessel.

ren/o

Combining form meaning kidney.

ureter/o

Combining form meaning ureter.

urethr/o

Combining form meaning urethra.

vesic/o

Combining form meaning bladder, sac (refers to the urinary bladder unless otherwise identified).

albumin/o

Combining form meaning albumin.

azot/o

Combining form meaning urea, nitrogen.

blast/o

Combining form meaning developing cell, germ cell.

glycos/o

Combining form meaning sugar.

hem/o

Combining form meaning blood.

hydr/o

Combining form meaning water.

lith/o

Combining form meaning stone(s), calculus (pl. calculi).

noct/i

Combining form meaning night (the combining vowel is i).

olig/o

Combining form meaning scanty, few.

son/o

Combining form meaning sound.

ur/o

Combining form meaning urine, urinary tract.

urin/o

Combining form meaning urine, urinary tract.

a-, an-

Prefix meaning absence of, without.

dys-

Prefix meaning painful, abnormal, difficult, labored.

intra-

Prefix meaning within.

poly-

Prefix meaning many, much.

trans-

Prefix meaning through, across, beyond.

-al

Suffix meaning pertaining to.

-ary

Suffix meaning pertaining to.

-cele

Suffix meaning hernia, protrusion.

-ectomy

Suffix meaning excision, surgical removal.

-emia

Suffix meaning in the blood.

-gram

Suffix meaning the record, radiographic image.

-graphy

Suffix meaning process of recording, radiographic imaging.

-iasis

Suffix meaning condition.

-itis

Suffix meaning inflammation.

-lith

Suffix meaning stone(s), calculus (pl. calculi).

-logist

Suffix meaning one who studies and treats (specialist, physician).

-logy

Suffix meaning study of.

-lysis

Suffix meaning loosening, dissolution, separating.

-megaly

Suffix meaning enlargement.

-oma

Suffix meaning tumor, swelling.

-osis

Suffix meaning abnormal condition.

-pexy

Suffix meaning surgical fixation.

-plasty

Suffix meaning surgical repair.

-ptosis

Suffix meaning drooping, sagging, prolapse.

-scope

Suffix meaning instrument used for visual examination.

-scopy

Suffix meaning visual examination.

-stenosis

Suffix meaning constriction or narrowing.

-stomy

Suffix meaning creation of an artificial opening.

-tomy

Suffix meaning cut into, incision.

-tripsy

Suffix meaning surgical crushing.

-uria

Suffix meaning urine, urination.

acute kidney injury (AKI)

Abrupt decline in kidney function that occurs over hours to days and is usually reversible; also called acute renal failure [ARF].

chronic kidney disease (CKD)

Progressive, irreversible loss of kidney function; also called chronic renal failure [CRF].

end-stage kidney disease (ESKD)

Condition in which kidneys no longer function on their own. Dialysis or kidney transplantation is necessary for survival; also called end-stage renal disease [ESRD].