ABSTRACT
Functional renal failure (FRF), a syndrome characterized by the spontaneous development of a marked reduction of renal blood flow and GFR, oliguria, and dilutional hyponatremia in the absence of significant histological abnormalities of the kidney, is a major complication of cirrhotics with ascites. Since patients had arterial hypotension, increased cardiac output, and highly oxygenated peripheral venous blood, these authors speculated that the initial mechanism of FRF was a reduced arterial pressure secondary to peripheral arteriolar vasodilation. Minor histological glomerular abnormalities are frequently found in patients with cirrhosis. Renin is produced in the kidney by specialized cells or the juxtaglomerular apparatus which is in the intimate contact with the vascular pole of the glomerulus and convoluted distal tubule. Renin is an enzyme with no biological activity and acts on an alpha-globulin synthesized by the liver, releasing the inactive decapeptide angiotensin I.
