Purpose: To determine the frequency of complications and death following image-guided and/or image-assisted liver biopsy and to identify significant variables associated with an increased risk of complications or death.
Materials and methods: Institutional review board approval for this type of study is not required in the United Kingdom. United Kingdom radiology departments with a department leader for audit registered with the Royal College of Radiologists were invited to participate. The first 50 consecutive patients who underwent liver biopsy in 2008 were included. Audit standards were developed for minor pain (<30%), severe pain (<3%), vasovagal hypotension (<3%), significant hemorrhage (<0.5%), hemobilia (<0.1%), puncture of another organ (<0.1%), and death (<0.1%). Organizational, clinical, and coagulation variables were investigated statistically for their association with complications and/or death.
Results: Data were obtained from 87 of 210 departments (41%). Audit standards were met for pain, hypotension, hemorrhage, hemobilia, and puncture of another organ. There were four hemorrhage-related deaths, and this target was narrowly missed (rate achieved in practice, 0.11% [four of 3486 patients]). Fifteen additional patients experienced at least one major complication. The international normalized ratio (INR) was absent in 3% of cases (97 of 2951 patients), the platelet count was absent in 1% (32 of 2986 patients), the INR was more than 1 week old in 8% (229 of 2888 patients), and the platelet count was more than 1 week old in 10% (291 of 2955 patients).
Conclusion: Results of this audit confirm that image-guided and image-assisted biopsy is performed safely in United Kingdom radiology departments, with complication rates within expected parameters. Preprocedural clotting assessment was inadequate in some cases and would merit repeat audit.
Supplemental material: http://radiology.rsna.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1148/radiol.12120224/-/DC1.
RSNA, 2012