Renal Function and Disease in the Elderly

Renal Function and Disease in the Elderly explores the renal system of elders. The book details the various roles of renal system, as well as the illnesses that the elderly can have. The book is inspired by the insufficient attention this topic has received among medical personnel. The book begins by discussing the changes in a person's vessels and kidney as he or she ages. The discussion then shifts to the older person's glomerulus and renal blood flow. Other chapters offer information about how aging affects a person's body systems and processes including water balance, electrolytes, kidneys, proximal tubes, and ingestion of drugs. Diseases such as urinary tract infection, interstitial nephropathies, glomerulonephritis, renal vasculitis, renal cyst, acute renal failure, and obstructive uropathy are also explained. While the book is primarily a valuable reference for medical practitioners in the field, it also caters to students and casual readers. Elderly readers, regardless of whether they have a disease or not, can also benefit from this book.

Introduction The Kidney: A Model for the Study of Aging in a Physiological System

1 Anatomic Structural and Vascular Changes in the Aging Kidney

2 Glomerular Filtration and Renal Blood Flow in the Aged

3 Mechanisms of Age-Associated Glomerular Sclerosis

4 Physiology and Disorders of Water Balance and Electrolytes in the Elderly

5 Hypertension in the Elderly: Pathophysiology and Its Implications for Treatment

6 The Aging Kidney and Calcium-Regulating Hormones: Vitamin D Metabolites, Parathyroid Hormone and Calcitonin

7 Proximal Tubular Function and Renal Acidification in the Aged

8 Changes in Renal Function and Morphology in Aging Laboratory Animals

9 Pharmacokinetics in the Aged

10 Summing up: What Does Decreased Renal Function in the Aged Mean?

11 Incidence of Renal Diseases in a Geriatric Unit

12 Hypertension in the Elderly: Clinical Aspects

13 Urinary Tract Infection in Old Age

14 Interstitial Nephropathies and Pyelonephritis in the Aged

15 Glomerular Disease in the Aged

16 Renal Vasculitis in the Aged

17 Renal Cystic Disease in the Elderly

18 Renal Malignancies in the Elderly

19 Obstructive Uropathy in the Elderly

20 Acute Renal Failure in Old People

21 Aetiology and Diagnosis of Chronic Renal Insufficiency in the Aged: The Role of Renal Biopsy

22 Dialysis Treatment of End-Stage Renal Disease in the Elderly

23 Renal Transplantation in Older Patients

Index