Can we create an artificial/mechanical kidney to treat kidney failure?
THE FUTURE IS HERE.....WELL, ALMOST! It has been a while since researchers started working on developing prototypes of artificial kidneys that could literally be implanted in to a human suffering from kidney failure. Theoretically, this kind of artificial kidney would replace the functions of a normal human kidney. It would flush the blood of all metabolic toxins, maintain all body electrolytes in the narrow range necessary for all life processes, produce hormones like erythropoietin (that drives the bone marrow to produce red blood cells), activate vitamin D, regulate blood pressure, etc etc. Yes, these are all some of the functions that those miracles of nature sitting in your flanks, your kidneys, are doing right now.