Human Organ Systems - Excretory System (Kidneys, Ureters, Bladder and Urethra)

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Human Organ Systems - Excretory System (Kidneys, Ureters, Bladder and Urethra)

 

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Excretory System

The excretory system is a passive biological system that removes excess, unnecessary or dangerous materials from an organism, so as to help maintain homeostasis within the organism and prevent damage to the body. It is responsible for the elimination of the waste products of metabolism as well as other liquid and gaseous wastes. As most healthy functioning organs produce metabolic and other wastes, the entire organism depends on the function of the system; however, only the organs specifically for the excretion process are considered a part of the excretory system.

 

As it involves several functions that are only superficially related, it is not usually used in more formal classifications of anatomy or function.

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Kidneys

The kidneys are organs with several functions. They are seen in many types of animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are an essential part of the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid-base balance, and regulation of blood pressure. They serve the body as a natural filter of the blood, and remove wastes which are diverted to the urinary bladder. In producing urine, the kidneys excrete wastes such as urea and ammonium; the kidneys also are responsible for the reabsorption of water, glucose, and amino acids. The kidneys also produce hormones including calcitriol, renin, and erythropoietin.

 

Located at the rear of the abdominal cavity in the retroperitoneum, the kidneys receive blood from the paired renal arteries, and drain into the paired renal veins. Each kidney excretes urine into a ureter, itself a paired structure that empties into the urinary bladder.

 

Renal physiology is the study of kidney function, while nephrology is the medical specialty concerned with kidney diseases. Diseases of the kidney are diverse, but individuals with kidney disease frequently display characteristic clinical features. Common clinical conditions involving the kidney include the nephritic and nephrotic syndromes, renal cysts, acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, urinary tract infection, nephrolithiasis, and urinary tract obstruction. Various cancers of the kidney exist; the most common adult renal cancer is renal cell carcinoma. Cancers, cysts, and some other renal conditions can be managed with removal of the kidney, or nephrectomy. When renal function, measured by glomerular filtration rate, is persistently poor, dialysis and kidney transplantation may be treatment options. Although they are not severely harmful, kidney stones can be a pain and a nuisance. The removal of kidney stones includes sound wave treatment, which breaks up the stones into smaller pieces which are then passed through the urinary tract. One common symptom of kidney stones is a sharp pain in the medial/lateral segments of the lower back.

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Ureters

In human anatomy, the ureters are muscular tubes that propel urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. In the adult, the ureters are usually 25–30 cm (10–12 in) long and ~3-4 mm in diameter.

 

In humans, the ureters arise from the renal pelvis on the medial aspect of each kidney before descending towards the bladder on the front of the psoas major muscle. The ureters cross the pelvic brim near the bifurcation of the iliac arteries (which they run over). This is a common site for the impaction of kidney stones (the others beings the ureterovesical valve and the pelviureteric junction where the ureter joins the renal pelvis in the renal hilum). The ureters run posteroinferiorly on the lateral walls of the pelvis and then curve anteriormedially to enter the bladder through the back, at the vesicoureteric junction, running within the wall of the bladder for a few centimetres. The backflow of urine is prevented by valves known as ureterovesical valves.

 

In females, the ureters pass through the mesometrium and under the uterine arteries on the way to the urinary bladder.

 

Ureters are also found in all other amniote species, although different ducts fulfil the same role in amphibians and fish.

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Bladder

In human anatomy, the urinary bladder is the organ that collects urine excreted by the kidneys before disposal by urination. A hollow muscular, and distensible (or elastic) organ, the bladder sits on the pelvic floor. Urine enters the bladder via the ureters and exits via the urethra.

 

Bladders occur throughout much of the animal kingdom, but are very diverse in form and in some cases are not homologous with the urinary bladder in humans.

 

Embryologically, the human urinary bladder is derived from the urogenital sinus and, it is initially continuous with the allantois. In males, the base of the bladder lies between the rectum and the pubic symphysis. It is superior to the prostate, and separated from the rectum by the rectovesical excavation. In females, the bladder sits inferior to the uterus and anterior to the vagina. It is separated from the uterus by the vesicouterine excavation. In infants and young children, the urinary bladder is in the abdomen even when empty.

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Urethra

In anatomy, the urethra (from Greek ourethra) is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the genitals for removal out of the body. In males, the urethra travels through the penis, and carries semen as well as urine. In females, the urethra is shorter and emerges above the vaginal opening.

 

The external urethral sphincter is a striated muscle that allows voluntary control over urination.

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