Liver Biopsy

What is a liver biopsy?

A liver biopsy is a medical procedure. The doctor who performs the biopsy will remove a very small piece of your child's liver. This piece is not large enough to affect the liver's function, but is large enough to do special tests.

When does a child need a liver biopsy?

Reasons include:

What is the preparation for a liver biopsy?

There is no particular preparation needed for a liver biopsy. On the morning of the test, the child has to have an empty stomach and cannot drink any beverages for at least three hours before the test. Also, it is important that your child does not receive any medications which could increase bleeding, such as aspirin or ibuprofen.

How will my child be sedated during a liver biopsy?

Most children are sedated for this procedure. There are two common methods of sedation, intravenous sedation and general anesthesia. Your doctor will help you decide which is best for your child based on medical condition and age. Both methods of sedation have excellent safety when undertaken by experienced doctors. In some children, sedation is achieved with an intravenous (IV) line. With this method, combinations of medications are used until the child is deeply sedated. An alternative method is the use of general anesthesia. An anesthesiologist gives medications that cause such a deep level of sedation that a tube is passed into the breathing tubes to help the child breathe during the procedure.

With both types of sedation, a local anesthetic (pain-killer) is usually injected into the area. (In adults, sometimes local anesthetic is used without additional sedation.)

How is a liver biopsy done?

A liver biopsy is done in a hospital. After sedation and locating the exact place for the biopsy, a needle is placed into the liver. As it is removed, a small piece of liver is removed. This happens very quickly once everything is ready.

After the procedure, your child will be watched in the hospital until it is safe to go home; this will vary based on the age of the child and the reason for the liver biopsy but typically is 4 to 24 hours.

What are the risks, benefits, and alternatives of the procedure?

A liver biopsy is considered a safe procedure. But as is true for any medical procedure, there are some risks. These risks include:

The benefits of the procedure include accurate diagnosis of your child's liver disease, allowing specific treatments. The liver biopsy is usually the most accurate way to tell what's wrong with the liver and how much damage has been done to the liver.

The alternatives to the procedure may include blood tests and imaging tests like ultrasound, and CT scans. However, when these tests do not give enough information, a liver biopsy may be needed. Even though there are some risks of the procedure, usually not doing a liver biopsy (when it is needed) is much riskier because the information a liver biopsy can provide is very important.

After the procedure, you should call your child's healthcare provider if any of the following occur:

Summary

Liver Biopsy is a common outpatient procedure that allows accurate diagnosis of many liver disorders in children. Serious complications are rare.