URINARY SYSTEM By: CYBILL D.

DIAZ, RN, MAN

Components Function
Kidneys are two bean shaped organs lying close to
Kidneys the lumbar spine on either side, they are multifunction
organ, form urine and control its concentration
Two hollow muscular tubes one arising from each
Ureters kidney and ending at the urinary bladder, connect
kidneys to the bladder

Urinary Stores urine before it is excreted from the body,

hollow muscular and distensible organ, sits on the
Bladder pelvic floor.
A tube connecting the urinaly bladder to the genitals
Urethra for excretion
• Urinary system is also known as
excretory system of human body.
• It is the system of production, storage
and elimination of urine.
• Formation and elimination of urine is
important for human body because
urine contains nitrogenous wastes of
the body that must be eliminated to
maintain homeostasis.
• Nitrogenous wastes are formed by
metabolic activities in the cells. These
nitrogenous wastes along with excess
of salts and water are combined in the
kidneys to form urine.
COMPONENTS OF URINARY SYSTEM:
KIDNEYS: URETERS: URINARY URETHRA: SPHINCTER
BLADDER: MUSCLES:
• the major • muscular tubes • collects urine • a tube that • two sphincter
organs of extending from before it is connects the muscles to
urinary system. the kidneys to excreted from urinary control the
Formation of the urinary the body. bladder to the elimination of
urine takes bladder. Urine Urinary external urine from
place in flows in these bladder is a genitalia for human body.
kidneys which tubes from hollow muscular elimination The external of
are two bean kidney to the and elastic from the body. the two muscles
shaped organs urinary organ siting on is striated and
lying close to bladder. the pelvic floor is under
the lumbar voluntary
spine, one on control of the
each side of body.
the body.
FUNCTIONS OF URINARY SYSTEM:
As stated above, urinary system is the excretory
system of human body. It performs the following
important functions:
FORMATION AND ELIMINATION OF URINE
OSMOREGULATION
ACID BASE BALANCE
FORMATION AND ELIMINATION OF
URINE:
The main function of urinary system is formation and
elimination of urine.
Urine is formed by the kidneys in 3 steps:
1) Glomerular Filtration
2)Tubular reabsorption
3)Tubular secretion.
OSMOREGULATION:
Kidneys are important osmoregulatory organs of
human body.
They maintain salt and water balance of the body.
If the concentration of salt or water is increased above
normal, kidney will excrete the excess amount.
If the concentration is decreased, kidneys will reduce the
loss of water and salts in urine.
ACID BASE BALANCE:
Kidneys are important regulators of pH of body
fluids.
The kidneys have some ability to alter the amount
of acid or base that is excreted, but because the
kidneys make these adjustments more slowly than
the lungs do, this compensation generally takes
several days.
COMPONENTS OF THE
Kidney
Ureters
Urinary Bladder
URINARY SYSTEM Urethra
Urinary Sphincter
KIDNEY
Human body has two kidneys, which are the prime
organs of the urinary system and function to excrete
most of the waste products of metabolism.
The waste products are formed into urine, which
leaves the kidney by passing down the ureters to the
urinary bladder, from where it is expelled out of the
body through urethra.
In addition to their excretory function, the kidneys
are the chief controllers of the water and electrolyte
balance as well as the acid base balance within the
human body.
COVERINGS:
Fibrous capsule: It surrounds the kidney and is closely applied to
its outer surface.
Perirenal fat: It surrounds the fibrous capsule.
Renal fascia: It is a condensation of connective tissue and lies
outside the perirenal fat. In addition to the kidney, it also encloses
the suprarenal gland. The renal fascia is continuous with the fascia
transversalis.
Pararenal fat: It is found often in large quantity and lies external
to the renal fascia. If forms part of the retroperitoneal fat.
EXTERNAL STRUCTURE:
Each kidney is reddish-brown, bean shaped organ and is
about 4 inches long and 2 inches wide. It has a medial
concave surface and a lateral convex surface.
On the medial concave border of each kidney, there is a
vertical slit called hilum, which is bounded by thick lips of
the renal substance. Inside the kidney, the hilum extends
into a large cavity called renal sinus. All structures that
enter or exit the kidney pass through the hilum.
INTERNAL STRUCTURE:
When viewed in transverse section, each kidney appears to consist of two layers. The
dark brown outer layer is called cortex and the light brown inner layer is called
medulla, which is composed of about one dozen renal pyramids.
The cortex extends into the medulla as renal columns.
Similarly there are striations, known as medullary rays, which extend from the renal
pyramids into the cortex.
The renal sinus, the space within the hilum, contains the renal pelvis that is the upper
expanded end of the ureter.
The pelvis is divided into 2 or 3 major calyces, each of which divides into 2 or 3
minor calyces.
Each minor calyx is indented by the apex of the renal pyramid, called the renal
papilla.
NEPHRONS
Kidney nephrons are the functional units of the
kidneys.
There are normally approx. one million (0.8 - 1.5
million) kidney nephrons in each of the two kidneys
in the body.
There are two parts of a kidney nephron:
the renal corpuscle
the renal tubule
(1) RENAL CORPUSCLE
The renal corpuscle is the part of the kidney nephron in
which blood plasma is filtered.
The term "corpuscle" means "tiny" or "small" body.
The renal corpuscle of each kidney nephron has two parts:
Glomerulus, which is a network of small blood vessels called
capillaries
Bowman's Capsule (also known as the Glomerular Capsule),
which is the double-walled epithelial cup within which the
glomerulus is contained.
GLOMERULUS
Contians glomerular capillaries that are located between
the afferent arteriole bringing blood into the glomerulus
and the efferent arteriole draining blood away from the
glomerulus.
The (outgoing) efferent arteriole has a smaller diameter
than the (incoming) afferent arteriole.
This difference in arteriole diameters helps to raise the
blood pressure in the glomerulus.
 BOWMAN’S CAPSULE
The area between the double-walls of the Bowman's Capsule is called the
capsular space.
The cells that form the outer edges of the glomerulus form close attachments to
the cells of the inner surface of the Bowman's Capsule.
 This combination of cells adhered to each other forms a filtration membrane
that enables water and solutes (substances that are dissolved in the
water/blood) to pass through the first wall of the Bowman's Capsule into the
capsular space.
 This filtration process is helped by the raised blood pressure in the glomerulus -
due to the difference in diameter of the afferent and efferent arterioles
 blood is forced
renal corpuscle through the higher pressure
glomerular
capillaries

blood fluid is increased

forced out of a filtration pressure in the
the glomerulus process occurs glomerular
capillaries

into the capsular

space of the glomerular
Bowman's filtrate
Capsule
(2) RENAL TUBULE
The renal tubule is the part of the kidney nephron into
which the glomerular filtrate passes after it has reached
the Bowman's capsule.
The first part of the renal tubule is called the proximal
convoluted tubule (PCT).
 proximal enter the Loop descending ascending
convoluted of Henle limb of Henle limb of Henle
tubule (PCT)

When this
In order to pass from the then back to fluid returns to
pass through renal cortex the renal the renal
the Loop of into the renal cortex. cortex (via the
Henle medulla ascending
limb of Henle)
passes into the drained into
distal the collecting papillary drain into the
convoluted ducts ducts minor calces
tubule (DCT)

the major into renal

calyx pelvis
BLOOD SUPPLY OF KIDNEYS
Abdominal Arcuate Interlobular
aorta arteries arteries

Renal Interlobar Afferent

arteries arteries glomerular
arterioles

Segmental Lobar
arteries arteries
URETER
Human body has two ureters, each of which is a
muscular tube that extends from the corresponding
kidney to the posterior surface of the urinary
bladder.
Urine is propelled along the ureters by peristaltic
contractions of their muscular wall, aided by the
filtration pressure of the glomeruli.
STRUCTURE OF URETERS
Each ureter is about 10 inches long and lies in a
vertical plane.
Both ureters have three constrictions along the
course (similar to the esophagus).
The first constriction exists where the renal pelvis joins the
ureter.
The second occurs where it is kinked as it crosses the
pelvic brim.
The third occurs where it pierces the wall of the bladder.
URINARY BLADDER
Urinary bladder is the sac-like hollow muscular and
distensible organ that collects urine formed in the kidney
and temporarily stores it before it can be excreted from
the body.
Urinary bladder is situated immediately behind the pubic
bones within the pelvis. It has strong muscular walls with
three openings: two for ureters and one for urethra.
LOCATION:
Urinary bladder of an adult person has a maximum
capacity of about 500ml.
Its shape and relations vary according to the amount of
urine that it contains.
Empty bladder lies entirely within the pelvis, however, as it
fills with urine, superior wall rises up into the hypogastric
region.
SHAPE:
Empty bladder is pyramidal in shape.
It has an apex, a base, a superior surface and two
inferolateral surfaces.
The apex points anteriorly and lies behind the upper margin of
the symphysis pubis.
It is connected to the umbilicus by the median umbilical
ligament, which represents the remains of the urachus.
The base of the bladder is triangular and faces posteriorly.
DETRUSOR MUSCLE:
The layer of bladder wall made of smooth muscle is
collectively called detrusor muscle.
It is composed of three layers of smooth muscle fibers:
spiral, longitudinal and circular.
It is the detrusor muscle whose contraction causes expulsion
of urine from the bladder, under the action of
parasympathetic nervous system.
TRIGONE:
Trigone is the triangular area of mucous membrane
covering the internal surface of the base of the bladder
between the two ureteral orifices superiorly and the
urethral orifice inferiorly.
Unlike the rest of the bladder, the mucous membrane of
trigone is always devoid of folds, even when the bladder
is empty.
The reason is that in this region the mucous membrane is firmly
adherent to the underlying muscular coat.
NECK OF BLADDER:
Neck of the urinary bladder is its inferior part that rests on the
prostate gland. Here the smooth muscle fibers of the bladder are
continuous with those of the prostate.
The neck is also supported by the puboprostatic ligaments (in
males) or pubovesical ligaments (in females).
These ligaments are thickenings of pelvic fascia. When the bladder
gets filled with urine, the support of the neck makes it stationary
and only the superior surface of the bladder rises into the
abdominal cavity.
URETHRA
Urethra is the duct that connects the urinary bladder
to the genitals for the removal of fluids out of the
body.
In males, the urethra travels through the penis and is
the route for passage of both urine and semen.
In females urethra is shorter and is used only for
urination.
MALE URETHRA:
Male urethra is about 8 inches long that extends from the
neck of the bladder to the external meatus of the glans
penis.
It provides exit for urine as well as semen during
ejaculation.
It is divided into three parts.
PROSTATIC URETHRA:
It is about 1.25 inches long that begins at the neck of the bladder and
passes through the prostate from the base to the apex. It is the widest
and most dilatable portion of the urethra.

On the posterior wall, there is a longitudinal ridge called the urethral

crest, on each side of which is a groove called prostatic sinus. The
prostatic ducts open into these sinuses.

On the summit of the urethral crest is a depression known as the prostatic

utricle. It is an analog of the uterus and vagina in females. On the edge
of the mouth of the utricle are the openings of the two ejaculatory ducts.
MEMBRANOUS URETHRA:
It is the part of urethra that lies within the urogenital diaphragm. It is
about 0.5 inches in length and is surrounded by the sphincter urethrae
muscle.
Membranous urethra is the shortest and the least dilatable part of
urethra.
The bulbourethral glands are found posterior to this part of urethra but
they open into the penile urethra.

Membranous urethra is continuous above with the prostatic urethra and

below with the penile urethra.
PENILE URETHRA:
It is about 6 inches long and is enclosed in the bulb and
corpus spongiosum of penis.
The terminal part of the penile urethra, which lies within the
glans penis, is dilated to form fossa terminalis (navicular
fossa).

The ducts of the bulbourethral glands open into the penile

urethra below the urogenital diaphragm.
FEMALE URETHRA:
Female urethra is about 1.5 inches in length. It extends
from the neck of the bladder to the external meatus,
where it opens into the vestibule about 1 inch below the
clitoris.
The female urethra traverses the sphincter urethrae muscle
and lies in front of the vagina. At the sides of the external
urethral meatus, there are small openings of the ducts of
the paraurethral glands.