Kidney Health

Watch this video to learn about what happens in the body when you have kidney stones. And find out about possible treatments for them.

These are mineral deposits. They form in your kidneys (the organs that filter your blood to produce urine). They can cause excruciating pain, but typically they don't cause physical harm to your body.

Kidney stones are a common problem, affecting about 12% of men and 5% of women. Stones are typically caused by an imbalance in the urinary system: too little water, too much oxalate, or too much calcium. In this video, you'll find out how the stones develop and what you can do to prevent them.

This is a procedure to put a thin, soft tube called a stent into one of your ureters. Ureters carry urine from your kidneys to your bladder. The stent will help hold your ureter open. That helps your urine flow properly.

With this disease, you develop clusters of fluid-filled cysts. They mainly grow in your kidneys, but they can grow in your liver and in other places, too. These cysts aren't cancerous. But they can harm your kidneys and make it hard for them to work properly.

This treatment breaks apart kidney stones that are stuck in your kidneys or your ureters (the tubes that connect your kidneys to your bladder). Breaking a stone into smaller pieces can allow it to pass more easily.

The kidneys are a pair of bean-shaped organs at the back of your abdomen. They're found below your ribs on each side of your spine. Let's take a moment to learn more about these organs and what they do for the body.

A nephrologist is a doctor who specializes in caring for the kidneys. These bean-shaped organs remove waste and extra fluid from your blood. They also perform other important jobs. When the kidneys don't work properly, you can develop serious and even life-threatening issues.

This pair of glands is found in your abdomen. We also call them the "suprarenal" glands, because they sit on top of the kidneys. But what do they do, exactly? Let's take a look at your adrenal glands.

Kidneys help cleanse your body of waste. Keeping them healthy is important. Let's look at some ways you can do that.

Learn about the kidneys--where they're located, how they filter waste from the blood, and their other roles in keeping the body healthy.

The kidneys' main job is to clean the blood. They filter wastes and excess fluids from thousands of pints of blood each day. Learn about their other roles as well.

Assess your risk factors by answering these questions.

Kidney stones are made up of chemical crystals that separate out from urine. These crystals clump together to make stones.

If you've had a kidney stone, you may worry that you'll have another. Removing or passing your stone doesn't prevent future stones. But with your healthcare provider's help you can reduce your risk of forming new stones.

High blood pressure that isn't controlled can damage the walls of the blood vessels in your body, including those in the kidneys.

Simple kidney cysts are fluid-filled sacs that form in your kidneys. These cysts often don't affect how the kidneys function. Simple kidney cysts are very common. They rarely need treatment. Most people don't even know that they have them.

Hydronephrosis is when your kidneys fill with too much urine and swell up. It's cause by a problem in the urinary tract that stops urine from draining normally.

An abscess is a pocket of infection that has liquid called pus. An infection like this in the kidney is called a renal abscess.

Kidney failure and its treatment will mean making some changes. But you can still live a full life with kidney failure. Read on to learn more.

Your healthcare provider will teach you how to care for your catheter and exit site. Good care is important to prevent infection. If an infection occurs, the catheter may have to be taken out. A new one will have to be put in at a later date.