[The functions of the kidneys and the basic mechanisms of their regulation in premature infants].

Kidney function and some mechanisms of its regulation were studied in 161 premature babies. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system was found to play a certain role in controlling the water-electrolyte balance in premature infants. The incidence of pronounced and latent renal failure in infants with posthypoxia lesions of the central nervous system (CNS) of varying degrees was demonstrated. The informative value of calculation parameters of partial kidney functions as the early diagnostic criteria in pronounced and latent renal failure is confirmed. A role that the revealed posthypoxia hypermyoglobinemia might possibly play in the pathogenesis of acute renal failure in premature infants is discussed.