26th June 2023

Overview

The kidneys may be directly involved in a number of diseases or affected secondarily by diseases of other organs.
Given their microcirculation, the kidneys are often susceptible to damage in other disorders which affect blood vessels. This can be due to damage to the renal glomerulus or renal tubules themselves, deposition of toxic products, or inflammation.

Renal disease is often categorised by histological findings on renal biopsy; however, in some cases, this may not be necessary as the cause of the renal disease may be obvious by the clinical findings of the causative disorder. In this section we will explore some of the chronic systemic diseases which commonly impact the kidneys.