Safety, Utilization, and Cost of Image-Guided Percutaneous Liver Biopsy Among Cancer Patients

Abstract

<p>Image-guided percutaneous liver biopsy (PLB) is a diagnostic tool for lesions in the liver. Hemorrhage is the most common complication. We selected patients with a diagnostic claim for cancer who had undergone PLB. There were a total of 26,941 patients who underwent PLB. Hemorrhage risk was 1.43% among patients undergoing PLB. When stratified by setting, odds of hemorrhage were 4.5 times higher when biopsy was performed in an inpatient setting (<i>p</i> < .001). Risk factors associated with hemorrhage included marital status, liver cancer and comorbidity score. The use of PLB has increased over time. Reassuringly, the hemorrhage risk associated with PLB is low.</p