60 illustrations including 5 cartoons for 'Structures and Functions of the Kidneys' revision guide in keeping with the Oaka Books style. This was a great opportunity for me as an illustrator to revisit vector work.
Hover over each to read the accompanying captions.
Structures & Functions of the Kidney's, 2019
The urinary system
Size of an adult kidney
The kidneys remove toxic waste such as urea from the blood
Urea & excess water & salts filtered out
The bladder
Passing urine - the urethra
Kidney layers
Nephrons
Collecting ducts - where the body reabsorbs water
The ureter - branches into collecting ducts & then nephrons
Blood supply from the renal artery
The kidneys clean blood
If they don't work properly toxins build up in the body
Branching of renal artery into capillaries
Bowman's Capsule
The glomerus
Pressure in capillaries causes ultra filtration
Blood containing larger molecules & proteins leaves through the capillaries
The liquid forced out is called the filtrate
Selective reabsorption of useful things back into capillaries
The loop of henle
Glucose, salts & water selectively reabsorbed
The nephrons control how much water, sugar & salt the body loses
Changing the amount of water in the blood affects blood pressure
Sweating affects the amount of water in the blood
Diet - also affects water reabsorption
Anti-diuretic hormone helps regulate water reabsorption
The brain
ADH from the pituitary gland travels in the blood
Hypothalamus - controls the pituitary gland
The hypothalamus measure how much water is in the blood
Example of negative feedback
Sometimes kidneys don't work as they should - kidney disease. If they stop working it is called kidney failure
Testing urine can check if the kidneys are working properly
Urine should only contain waste products
Proteins and cells are too big to move into the nephrons - proteins in urine is a bad sign
The body wants to retain useful things
Too much glucose can signify diabetes
Diabetics can't control the amount of glucose in their blood
Too much glucose for the body to reabsorb can end up in urine
If one kidney stops working the other one has to work harder
If both stop working the person will die if not treated
Dialysis machines - artificial kidneys
Patients are connected via arteries
All blood passes through the machine for up to 12 hours
Semi-permeable membrane inside the machine only lets small particles move out of blood
Blood passes through and waste removed
A solution provides the correct amounts of sugars and salts to move back into the blood via diffusion
The machine keeps the blood at the correct temperature
Dialysis keeps people alive
Dialysis cannot replicate all the complex functions of the kidneys
Dialysis is a short term solution only
Patients must be careful of their diet
They need high protein foods and to avoid salt
Dialysis is expensive meaning that there is a waiting list
The long term treatment is kidney transplant
A close relative can donate a kidney
The closer the relative the less chance of the body rejecting it
Kidney transplant is major surgery
