Some facts about the kidneys

• The kidneys are organs which function to rid the body of some of its waste materials.
• The human body has 2 kidneys. They are shaped like large beans.
• Despite their relatively small size, the kidneys receive approximately twenty percent of the cardiac output.
• The right kidney is slightly lower and smaller than the left one.
• The kidneys serve the body as a natural filter of the blood.
• The kidneys are embedded in fatty tissues which protect the organs.
• The kidneys act as a filter system which collects and rids the body of many of its waste materials. The formation of urine depends upon the action of the kidneys.
• Calcitriol, renin, and erythropoietin hormones are produced in the kidneys.
• Each adult kidney weighs between 125 and 170 grams in males and between 115 and 155 grams in females.
• Common clinical conditions involving the kidney include the nephritic and nephrotic syndromes, nephrolithiasis, chronic kidney disease, renal cysts, urinary tract infection, acute kidney injury, and urinary tract obstruction.