All about Nephrology

Answer 1

Nephrology is a very specific realm of medicine that deals directly with the kidneys. The kidneys are the body’s filtering system, removing harmful chemicals, byproducts and infections. Their ability to filter out potentially dangerous or foreign contaminants is why so many medical tests involve a urine sample. In any person’s urine is all of the chemicals which the body wishes to throw away, which is why it is possible to detect drug use and some diseases through examination of the urine. For centuries it has been known that sweet-smelling urine is a symptom of Diabetes, since the body is dissolving excess sugar in the urine for excretion. The kidneys themselves have only come under study with the development of devices that can study them while they are still in the body.

Since the kidneys are internal organs, most of their examination must be done from the outside. In addition to urine samples, nephrologists will take x-rays, other external scans, and make use of probes in order to determine if there is anything blocking the path of either the urine or the filtered blood. Kidney stones not only cause extreme pain, but also can lead to kidney failure, infection and death. Their removal is difficult and painful, especially when they become large, and so nephrologists are committed to their early removal whenever possible. Advances in medicine allow the kidney stones to be dissolved rather than physically removed, although it is still necessary to monitor them to ensure the medication is working.

Nephrologists are also often the first to diagnose a disease. Since the kidneys come into contact with most of the body’s poisons, they are second only to the liver in terms of being readily identifiable as a symptom of disease. Most harmful microbes and infections excrete powerful poisons that the liver and kidneys must clear up, so swollen kidneys or irregularities in the urine are often a sign of infection. Nephrologists are also often the first to detect cancer, especially prostate cancer in men, since the growth of a cancerous prostate shuts off the flow of urine. As such, many nephrologists maintain relations with immunologists and doctors who specialize in treating cancer, since often a nephrologist is able to see the symptoms which indicate a disease is present.