A Reflection on the Urinary System
The urinary system comprises four main parts: the urethra, bladder, kidneys, and ureters. Since the urinary system is located in the lower body, the kidneys are found at the top, while the other parts come below them. Kidneys are found on either side of the spine and are as big as one’s fist (Biga et al., 2020). The next organ is the ureters, which are attached to the kidneys, one for each kidney, and travel downwards. Ureters are about thirty centimeters long and comprise smooth muscles that enable contractions during urine movement. The third part is the bladder, which holds urine until one has to excrete the urine (Biga et al., 2020). The bladder is hollow, shaped like a balloon, and made of the detrusor muscle. This muscle makes the bladder fluctuate as it fills up and empties urine.
The primary function of the urinary system is to filter blood, which results in urine formation (Biga et al., 2020). The excretion of urine is the second function of the urinary system. The blood filtration process begins in the kidney, where three processes (glomerular filtration, tubular reabsorption, and tubular secretion) occur subsequently (Biga et al., 2020). The end product of these processes is urine, which is passed to the ureters and travels down to the bladder. Here, micturition occurs, which is the process of emptying the bladder once approximately 200ml of urine has accumulated.
One of the concepts of the urinary system that I learned was that the color and odor of urine could be used to determine a person’s body’s hydration. As such, if I see darker and smelly urine, I know I need more hydration. Further, I also learned that urine could indicate health issues like diabetes, liver failure, and metabolic disease (Biga et al., 2020), which will be useful in my future career.
Learning more about the complex processes of the kidneys has been valuable to me as it opened me up to more research being conducted on pig-human kidney transplants. The progress made in this area is amazing and could eliminate the challenges people with kidney diseases face due to the lack of human kidney transplants (Cooper et al., 2020). Pig-human kidney transplants will also reduce crimes concerning kidnappings and human trafficking for organs (Russell, 2018). One topic that I found challenging was the urinary system and homeostasis. This topic comprised many other bodily processes and terms that were not clearly explained, and I often found myself getting confused.
References
Biga, L. M., Dawson, S., Harwell, A., Hopkins, R., Kaufmann, J., LeMaster, M., & Runyeon, J. (2020). Anatomy & Physiology. OpenStax/Oregon State University.
Cooper, D. K., Hara, H., Iwase, H., Yamamoto, T., Jagdale, A., Kumar, V., & Eckhoff, D. E. (2020). Clinical pig kidney xenotransplantation: how close are we? Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 31(1), 12-21.
Russell, A. (2018). Human trafficking: A research synthesis on human-trafficking literature in academic journals from 2000–2014. Journal of Human Trafficking, 4(2), 114-136.
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Question 
After reviewing and studying this module’s content, answer the following questions. Be sure to complete all lab activities and attend/watch all live lectures before completing this assignment. All your answers should be written in your own words, using full sentences, correct terminology, and proper spelling and grammar.
A Reflection on the Urinary System
Explain the anatomical concepts associated with the urinary system. Summarize this module’s key points in 5-6 sentences.
Explain the physiological concepts associated with the urinary system. Summarize this module’s key points in 5-6 sentences.
How will you apply the concepts you have learned about the urinary system in real life and in your future career?
Which topic within this module has been the most valuable to your learning experience and why?
Which topic(s) within this module did you struggle to understand and why?
(Optional) Do you have any suggestions for your instructor on how they could help you connect with the difficult topics you’ve noted?
Please check the Course Calendar for specific due dates.