Word parts
What it means
Damage to the kidney's filters, usually from the immune system. It can be acute, as after a strep throat or skin infection, mostly in children, or chronic, slowly leading to chronic kidney diseaseKRON-ik KID-nee dih-ZEEZKidney damage or reduced kidney function that lasts longer than three months.Full entry . When the filters are inflamed, blood and protein leak into the urine, and the kidneys hold salt and water.
For the nurse
Watch blood pressure, daily weight, intake and output, and swelling, especially around the eyes. Expect a limit on sodium and fluid, and sometimes protein, as ordered. Note dark, cola-colored or tea-colored urine.
At a glance
| Spanish | glomerulonefritis |
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Related terms
chronic kidney disease
Kidney damage or reduced kidney function that lasts longer than three months.
-itis
A word ending that means inflammation.
kidney
One of two bean-shaped organs in the back of the belly that filter the blood and make urine.
glomerul/o
A word root that means glomerulus, the tiny ball of capillaries in the kidney that filters the blood.