Video:Kidney Transplant Surgery
When kidney failure develops, kidney transplant may be necessary. Here's more information on kidney failure and kidney transplant.
Transcript:Kidney Transplant Surgery
What Are the Kidneys?
The kidneys are a pair of small, bean-shaped organs located towards the back of the torso, behind the lower ribs. Although people are born with a pair of kidneys, the body can still function efficiently with just one healthy kidney.How Kidneys Function
The functions of the kidneys include: filtering wastes from the blood, balancing the body's fluid content, regulating blood pressure and red blood cell productionWhat Causes Kidney Damage?
The kidneys can become damaged and unable to function normally due to kidney disease, infections, uncontrollable high blood pressure or because of complications from diabetes mellitus.Reasons for Kidney Transplant
If kidney failure develops, kidney transplantation may be recommended to replace the damaged kidney with a healthy, donated kidney. The donated kidney can come from a live donor or from a recently deceased donor.After Kidney Transplant
As with any organ transplant, the kidney recipient will require life-long treatment with medications that suppress the immune response in order to prevent the body’s immune system from rejecting the transplanted kidney.Risks of Kidney Transplant Surgery
There are several potential complications associated with this procedure that should be discussed with a doctor prior to surgery.Copyrighted animations provided by Blausen Medical.
