MMSC 210 Final Exam Study Notes – Urinary System Overview (Anatomy, Physiology & Clinical Concepts)

MMSC Exam 2 Notes

Language of Medicine (University of Delaware)

,Chapter 7: Urinary System
○ Kidneys
■ Functions
● Filter plasma to form urine (pH of 6, acidic, no glucose
should be found in urine)
○ Acidic
○ Urea
○ Uromodulin
○ Urobilin
■ Color of urine
○ Steps of filtration
■ Blood enters kidneys through right and the
left renal arteries
■ Arterioles carry blood to capillaries
■ Glomeruli filter blood (glomerular filtration)
● Blood passes through the glomeruli
● Bowman capsule surround each
glomeruli
● Renal tube is attached to each
bowman capsule
● Maintain proper balance of
○ Water
○ Electrolytes
■ Sodium
■ Potassium
○ Acids
■ Maintaining pH

● Secrete hormones
○ Erythropoietin (EPO)
■ Hormones that stimulates red blood cell
production in bone marrow
○ Renin
■ Enzyme important in adjusting blood
pressure
■ Kidney produced
■ Angiosinogenase
■ How Kidneys Form or Urine
● Glomerular filtration
● Tubular reabsorption
● Tubular secretion
○ Renal tube
■ Attached to the bowman capsule
■ Site of reabsorption
●
Water, sugar and all sodium return to
the bloodstream in the tiny capillaries

, surrounding the tubule, rest is left
to be released as urine
○ Glomerulus
■ Ball of capillaries in the kidney
○ Nephron
■ Combination of glomerulus and renal tube
■ FUNCTIONING PART OF KIDNEY
○ Bowman capsule
■ tiny , cup like structure that
surrounds each glomerulus
■ Peristalsis
● Help push waste through a tube
■ Females kidneys are slightly smaller than males due to their
on average smaller body mass
■ Nitrogenous wastes
● Urea
○ water soluble
○ Made with creatine and uric acid
● Uric acid
○ water soluble
● Creatinine
○ Nitrogenous waste excreted in urine
○ Product of muscle metabolism
● Hyperuricemia
○ High level of uric acid in level in blood
● Trigon
e
○ Senses when the bladder is full
○ Triangular structure
● Urter
○ One of the two muscular tubes lined with mucous membrane. Uterus
carry urine in waves from the kidney to the urinary bladder
● Urinary bladder
○ A hollow muscular sac, temporary reservoir for urine
● Urethra
○ A tube that carries urine from the urinary bladder to the outside of the
body
● Adrenal gland
○ Toward the kidney
○ On top of the kidney
Urinalysis
● Color
○ Yellow or straw-colored, normally
○ Clear color means the urine is hydrated, high water levels
■ Should be clear or very light, shows healthy patient
○ Urobilin (urochrome)

, ■ Helps apply color to urine
● Hemoglobin pigment in urine
○ Smokey red color means there is high blood levels in urine
■ Hematuria
■ Foods like beets and drugs can cause red colored urine as well
○ Cloudy or turbid color
■ Urinary tract infection (UTI)
■ Pus
■ Bacteria
● Specific gravity
○ The specific coluteus in a liquid, higher specific gravity
○ Abbreviated as SP Gr
● pH
○ Slightly acidic
○ 6.5
● Protein
○ Small amounts of protein are found in urine
○ Albumin
■ Leak in the glomerular membrane which allows albumin to
enter the renal tubule and pass into the urine
● Glucose
○ Glucose is not normally found in urine
○ When it does appear, its diabetes mellitus
■ Excess sugar in the bloodstream
○ Ketone bodies
■ Formed when fatty acids are broken down into the liver
Lab & Clinical Test
● Blood urea nitrogen (BUN)
○ Measurement of urea levels in blood
○ Measurement of renal function
○ Azotemia
■ Increase nitrogen in blood, increased BUN
○ Should be lower, urea should be going to urine not the blood
● Creatinine clearance
○ Measurement if the rate at which creatine is cleared from the blood by
the kidney
○ Assess renal function
○ Blood level compared to urine concentration over a fixed time
○ Indicator of glomerular filtration rate (GFR)
● CT urography
○ X-ray images obtained using computed tomography showing
multiple cross sectional and other views of the kidney
● Computed tomography (CT Scan)
○ Series of x ray images taken from different angles and planes of the
body