<P> The kidney is a bean - shaped structure with a convex and a concave border . A recessed area on the concave border is the renal hilum, where the renal artery enters the kidney and the renal vein and ureter leave . The kidney is surrounded by tough fibrous tissue, the renal capsule, which is itself surrounded by perirenal fat, renal fascia, and pararenal fat . The anterior (front) surface of these tissues is the peritoneum, while the posterior (rear) surface is the transversalis fascia . </P> <P> The superior pole of the right kidney is adjacent to the liver . For the left kidney, it is next to the spleen . Both, therefore, move down upon inhalation . </P> <P> In adult males, the kidney weighs between 125 and 170 grams . In females the weight of the kidney is between 115 and 155 grams . A Danish study measured the median renal length to be 11.2 cm (4.4 in) on the left side and 10.9 cm (4.3 in) on the right side in adults . Median renal volumes were 146 cm on the left and 134 cm on the right . </P> <P> The substance, or parenchyma, of the kidney is divided into two major structures: the outer renal cortex and the inner renal medulla . Grossly, these structures take the shape of eight to 18 cone - shaped renal lobes, each containing renal cortex surrounding a portion of medulla called a renal pyramid . Between the renal pyramids are projections of cortex called renal columns . Nephrons, the urine - producing functional structures of the kidney, span the cortex and medulla . The initial filtering portion of a nephron is the renal corpuscle which is located in the cortex . This is followed by a renal tubule that passes from the cortex deep into the medullary pyramids . Part of the renal cortex, a medullary ray is a collection of renal tubules that drain into a single collecting duct . </P>

What is the normal size of the human kidney
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