The kidney is an important organ for filtering and detoxifying the blood. In order to fulfill this task, the paired kidneys are the organs with the best blood supply in the entire body in relation to their weight.
Both substances absorbed from the outside, such as medication, and numerous toxins produced during metabolic processes in the body are filtered by the kidneys and excreted in the urine.
In addition, the kidneys perform a variety of other tasks in the body, such as regulating the water and electrolyte balance, the acid-base balance and the regulation of blood pressure and blood volume.
If kidney disease is not recognized and treated in time, in the worst case it can lead to dialysis (mechanical blood purification), which has to be carried out several times a week for around 4 to 5 hours.
Symptoms such as water retention with swelling of the legs, discoloration of the skin, blood in the urine or flank pain can therefore indicate kidney disease.
Unclear kidney changes that have been detected during an ultrasound examination, for example, can also be further clarified and classified using computer tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Computed tomography is able to detect even the smallest calcifications and lumps and can therefore also determine whether a kidney cyst is harmless or whether there is a risk of malignant degeneration. Kidney stones as small as a few millimeters can also be reliably detected or ruled out.
Magnetic resonance imaging makes it possible to assess the actual kidney tissue (parenchyma) in great detail and, through the use of contrast agents, to detect numerous diseases (e.g. renal cell carcinoma) at an early stage when they may still be invisible on ultrasound.
