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SELECTED ORGAN / STRUCTURE TO FUNCTION

Left kidney

A paired organ in the posterior abdomen links blood filtration to controlled water, electrolyte and acid–base balance.

Both kidneys remain visible so that choosing one side does not silently mirror or rename the normal bilateral anatomy.

Read the connected anatomy →

30-SECOND ORIENTATION / AN ILLUSTRATION AT ANOTHER SCALE

Connect the selected shape to normal anatomy.

The image and editable labels explain anatomical relationships. They do not reveal new structures in the model you selected.

Retained anterior reference illustration of paired kidneys with medial vessel approaches and descending ureters.
Retained AI-assisted gross-organ illustration, not a scan or an exact registration of the chosen source specimen. Patient right is image left; the right kidney is shown lower. The same bilateral overview serves either selected kidney without mirroring or relabelling the anatomy.
Structure notes · further context
Paired kidneys · relative position
Patient right is image left and usually lower; the medial hila face inward.
Renal arterial approach
Red stubs indicate blood entering, separate from the pale urine route.
Ureter
A muscular tube carries urine toward the bladder; it is not a vein.

Paired kidneys: position and separate routes · atlas detail

Retained anterior reference illustration of paired kidneys with medial vessel approaches and descending ureters.

Retained AI-assisted gross-organ illustration, not a scan or an exact registration of the chosen source specimen. Patient right is image left; the right kidney is shown lower. The same bilateral overview serves either selected kidney without mirroring or relabelling the anatomy.

Open full-resolution illustration ↗ · Image only; the same editable labels remain in this lesson.

3-MINUTE UNDERSTANDING / ONE CANONICAL LEARNING PATH

Continue from what you can see to how it works.

Each route opens the corresponding existing lesson. The same deeper chapter remains the source of its full medical explanation.

DEEPER LEARNING / ORIGINAL MODEL-LINKED EXPLANATIONS

Read the structure and function together.

Position and connections

The kidneys lie behind the peritoneal lining, on either side of the upper lumbar spine. The right is usually slightly lower. At the medial hilum, vessels enter and leave alongside the collecting pathway. Urine passes from the renal pelvis through the ureter to the bladder.

Filtration is a beginning

A glomerular capillary filter produces a fluid that enters the nephron tubule. Tubular cells then reclaim needed substances and secrete others. Collecting ducts adjust the final urine in response to physiological signals; urine is not simply blood with its cells removed.

Read the model at its own scale

The surface model establishes shape and sidedness. It does not expose a nephron, identify every vessel, or measure kidney function. Use the connected chapter for cortex, medulla, filtration and regulatory mechanisms.

Sources and scope

Original AllHumanBody teaching explanations and retained chapter illustrations. The selected source-labelled model, authentic medical photographs and AI-assisted teaching illustrations are different resource types. This plate is an illustration, not a scan, microscopy or certification of hidden structures in the selected model. Existing chapter source and image-provenance records are retained.

The original source-linked notes above are preserved. Detailed mechanisms and their supporting references remain in the linked canonical chapter. Medical source checks do not constitute human medical review or personal diagnostic advice; fine generated anatomy and physical-phone acceptance are not independently certified.