Kidney Biopsy

 A kidney biopsy is a procedure of removing a small piece of kidney tissue that is examined under a microscope to diagnose a disease condition. 

Reasons for kidney biopsy include: 

• Diagnosis of disease 
• Assess treatment method
• Assess the progression of the disease 
• Efficacy of the treatment 
• Monitoring a transplanted kidney 

A kidney biopsy procedure involves the insertion of a small needle to remove a sample of kidney tissue. It is often done under the guidance of an ultrasound device. After removing the needle, the region is secured by bandages. The kidney biopsy procedure generally takes about one hour to complete. There are two types of kidney biopsy: 

• Open biopsy 
• Needle biopsy 

Open biopsy is usually done under general anesthesia and the surgeon removes a piece of kidney for further examination. Sometimes post kidney transplant biopsy is required to evaluate the functioning. 

Sometimes kidney biopsy is obtained through a ureteroscope. This is a rare method of obtaining a biopsy. Since anesthesia is given, the procedure involves slight pain and the operated area may remain tender for about 3 to 4 days.