2225 UTI and AKI

In this episode of Nursing Student Deep Dive, we explore the renal system and how urinary tract infections and acute kidney injury can progress from subtle findings into serious, life-threatening complications. The focus is on helping nursing students connect changes in urine output, blood pressure, mental status, fluid balance, and laboratory values back to what is happening inside the kidneys.

Topics include kidney and nephron anatomy, glomerular filtration, GFR and creatinine, renal regulation of blood pressure and electrolytes, UTIs, CAUTIs, pyelonephritis, urosepsis, urinalysis and urine cultures, antibiotic therapy, and prevention strategies. We also break down pre-renal, intra-renal, and post-renal acute kidney injury, KDIGO criteria, the phases of AKI, nephrotoxic medications, rhabdomyolysis, fluid challenges, and critical changes in urine output.

This episode is designed to help nursing students move beyond thinking of the kidneys as simply “urine-making organs.” The goal is to understand how renal dysfunction affects fluid balance, electrolytes, acid-base status, blood pressure, oxygen delivery, and multiple organ systems—and to recognize the early warning signs of kidney deterioration before reversible injury becomes a critical emergency.