Meaning & use
natriuresis
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountablemedical
The loss of sodium from the body through the kidneys, especially when it is passed out in larger amounts than normal.
Grammar: Used without an or the in general statements: natriuresis increases after a salt load.
Patterns
- natriuresis in someone
- natriuresis after something
Some heart medicines work by promoting natriuresis, which lowers blood pressure.
Natriuresis rises when the body takes in too much salt.
The researchers measured natriuresis in patients over twenty-four hours.
Common combinations
- promote natriuresis
- The drug promotes natriuresis and reduces swelling.
- pressure natriuresis
- Pressure natriuresis helps the kidneys remove excess salt when blood pressure is high.
- increase natriuresis
- A high-salt meal can increase natriuresis.
- impaired natriuresis
- Impaired natriuresis contributes to fluid retention in kidney disease.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sodium excretion
- Sodium excretion is a plainer phrase for the same process, while natriuresis is the single technical term used in physiology.
- salt loss
- Salt loss is everyday wording that can also mean sweating, whereas natriuresis refers only to what the kidneys excrete.
Opposites
Word family
- natriuretic adjective
- causing sodium to be passed in the urine
- antinatriuresis noun
- reduced sodium loss through the kidneys
- diuresis noun
- increased production of urine
- natrium noun
- the Latin name from which sodium's symbol Na comes
Commonly confused: natriuresis or diuresis?
natriuresis vs diuresis
Diuresis means more urine of any kind being produced, while natriuresis refers specifically to extra sodium in it.
Practice
A doctor says a drug increases natriuresis. What does the drug do?
Choose one answer.
Natriuresis is excretion of sodium in the urine, so more of it means more sodium leaves the body. The option about holding sodium is the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “natriuresis”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.