MERGED urinary tract system and renal disease and dialysis

Kidneys

Bean-shaped organs located on either side of the vertebral column that filter blood, water, and metabolic waste, producing approximately $45\,\text{gallons}$ of filtrate per day.

Ureters

The two tubes that function as a transport system to pull urine out of the kidneys and carry it down into the bladder.

Urinary Bladder

A hollow muscular organ located on the floor of the pelvic cavity that stores urine (typically holding approximately $200\,\text{mL}$ or $7\,\text{ounces}$) prior to excretion.

Urethra

A hollow tube extending from the inferior aspect of the bladder that transports urine to the outside of the body.

Dialysis

A mechanical medical procedure that filters blood and waste on the outside of the body and returns it when the patient's kidneys are failing or non-functioning.

Renin

A substance secreted by the kidneys that helps regulate and maintain blood volume and blood pressure.

Nephrologist

A medical specialist who studies and treats disorders of the kidneys.

Urologist

A physician who specializes in the study and treatment of the urinary tract system.

Micturition

The physiological process of releasing and emptying urine from the bladder, requiring the relaxation of two sphincters.

Sphincter

A circular muscle that constricts and relaxes to close and open a bodily passage.

Void

A clinical term meaning to urinate or empty the contents of the bladder into a receptacle.

Hat

A disposable, top-hat-shaped plastic container placed into a toilet to collect, contain, and measure urine output or stool specimens.

Renal Cell Carcinoma

A type of kidney cancer commonly treated through surgical removal of the affected kidney (nephrectomy).

Wilms Tumor

A kidney neuroblastoma that typically occurs in children between the ages of $3$ and $8$, treated with surgery and chemotherapy.

Hematuria

The presence of blood in the urine.

Glomerulonephritis

Inflammation of the kidney's filtering units (glomeruli), often presenting acutely following a strep throat infection.

Pyelonephritis

An infection of the renal pelvis, commonly developing as part of an ascending urinary tract infection characterized by burning during urination.

Polycystic Kidney Disease

An inherited, genetic disorder characterized by the development of numerous cysts throughout the kidneys, eventually causing progressive kidney failure.

Acute Renal Failure

A sudden, short-term reduction or cessation of kidney filtration caused by factors such as medications, toxins, burns, trauma, or severe infections.

Chronic Renal Failure

The slow, progressive, and gradual loss of kidney function over an extended period of time.

End Stage Renal Disease

Advanced chronic kidney failure in which the kidneys function at less than $10\%$ of their normal operational capacity.

Anuria

The complete absence or lack of urine excretion and output.

Azotemia

The abnormal buildup and accumulation of nitrogenous waste products in the blood.

Oliguria

A abnormally low or reduced volume of urine output.

Proteinuria

The presence of abnormal quantities of protein in the urine.

Uremia

The complex of toxic clinical signs and symptoms resulting from severe renal failure and waste retention.

Nephrolithiasis

The formation of sharp crystalline calcium stones (calculi) in the kidney that can travel into and lodge within the ureter, causing severe pain.

Urinary Incontinence

The inability to control the bladder, resulting in involuntary leakage of urine (classified into stress, urge, overflow, and functional types).

Urinary Retention

The incomplete emptying of the bladder where the muscular organ retains significant residual urine after voiding.

KUB

A diagnostic X-ray of the kidneys, ureters, and bladder utilized to assess renal structures and detect masses or obstructions.

Cystoscopy

An endoscopic procedure using a slender camera inserted through the urethra to directly examine the interior lining of the bladder.

Shock Wave Lithotripsy

A non-invasive therapeutic procedure that directs external acoustic shock waves at kidney stones to pulverize them into small, passable fragments.

Radical Nephrectomy

The complete surgical removal of an entire kidney.

Facility Administrator

The role at a clinic (such as DaVita) responsible for managing the entire operations of the dialysis facility.

Dialysis

A medical procedure that primarily performs two functions: cleaning toxins from the blood and pulling excess fluid off the blood.

Hemodialysis

A modality of dialysis where blood is filtered through an external machine to remove toxins and excess fluid before returning it to the body, typically lasting $3$ to $4\text{ hours}$ per session, usually done $3\text{ times a week}$.

Central Venous Catheter

A dialysis vascular access placed in the heart, which is specifically cared for and managed by registered nurses rather than technicians.

Artificial Kidney

A term used for the tall dialyzer machine that filters blood and performs the essential functions of a biological kidney.

Peritoneal Dialysis

A dialysis method where fluid is infused directly into the peritoneal cavity via a suprapubic or abdominal catheter to filter waste and fluid from the body.

Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD)

A form of peritoneal dialysis performed at home, typically carried out $4\text{ times a day}$, $7\text{ days a week}$.

Continuous Cycling Peritoneal Dialysis (CCPD)

A form of peritoneal dialysis that utilizes an automated cycling machine while the patient sleeps, typically running through about $4\text{ bags}$ of fluid that weigh roughly $50\text{ pounds}$ each.

Diuretic Drugs

Medications, commonly referred to colloquially as "water pills," that increase urine output in the kidneys to pull excess fluid off the body.

Lasix

A specific diuretic medication prescribed to increase urination and flush excess fluids from the body.

Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy (BPH)

A non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland in men that is managed using prostate-specific medications.

HAART

A combination drug therapy consisting of at least $3\text{ drugs}$ used to treat sexually transmitted disease/HIV, which are processed directly in the kidneys.

Nonrenal Urinary Tract Drugs

Medications that do not target the renal system directly but treat urinary tract symptoms and related issues, such as urinary incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

Acute Renal Failure (ARF)

A rapid, short-duration loss of kidney function usually caused by trauma or infection that is reversible with appropriate medical intervention.

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)

A long-term, irreversible condition characterized by gradual loss of kidney function progressing through stages 1 through 3.

End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) / End Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD)

The advanced, final stage of kidney failure where kidney function has ceased, serving as a last resort requiring full-blown dialysis to sustain life.