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The renal medulla (Latin: medulla renis 'marrow of the kidney') is the innermost part of the kidney. The renal medulla is split up into a number of sections, known as the renal pyramids. Blood enters into the kidney via the renal artery, which then splits up to form the segmental arteries which then branch to form interlobar arteries.
The functional substance, or parenchyma, of the human kidney is divided into two major structures: the outer renal cortex and the inner renal medulla. Grossly, these structures take the shape of eight to 18 cone-shaped renal lobes, each containing renal cortex surrounding a portion of medulla called a renal pyramid. [18]
The collecting duct system of the kidney consists of a series of tubules and ducts that physically connect nephrons to a minor calyx or directly to the renal pelvis.The collecting duct participates in electrolyte and fluid balance through reabsorption and excretion, processes regulated by the hormones aldosterone and vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone).
The renal corpuscle is a blood-filtering part of the nephron and is located in the cortex. The renal tubule extends from the renal corpuscle to the medulla into the loop of Henle and then returns back to the cortex. Finally, the renal tubule flows with its distal end into its collecting duct, which is common to several nephrons.
A simple means of estimating renal function is to measure pH, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, and basic electrolytes (including sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate). As the kidney is the most important organ in controlling these values, any derangement in these values could suggest renal impairment.
The medulla consists of one or more pyramids, the bases of which start from corticomedullary border. Medulla pyramid with overlying cortex comprises the renal lobe. [28] In multilobar kidneys, the pyramids are separated from each other by dipped into the kidney areas of cortical tissue known as the renal columns. [61]
The arcuate arteries of the kidney, also known as arciform arteries, [1] are vessels of the renal circulation. They are located at the border of the renal cortex and renal medulla. They are named after the fact that they are shaped in arcs due to the nature of the shape of the renal medulla. Arcuate arteries arise from renal interlobar arteries ...
As the filtrate descends deeper into the hypertonic interstitium of the renal medulla, water flows freely out of the descending limb by osmosis until the tonicity of the filtrate and interstitium equilibrate. The hypertonicity of the medulla (and therefore concentration of urine) is determined in part by the size of the loops of Henle. [1]: 76