Safety of Renal Biopsy by Physicians with Short Nephrology Experience

Abstract

Percutaneous renal biopsy is an essential tool for diagnosing various renal diseases; however, little is known about whether renal biopsy performed by physicians with short nephrology experience is safe in Japan. This study included 238 patients who underwent percutaneous renal biopsy between April 2017 and September 2020. We retrospectively analyzed the frequency of post-renal biopsy complications (hemoglobin decrease of ≥10%, hypotension, blood transfusion, renal artery embolization, nephrectomy and death) and compared their incidence among physicians with varied experience in nephrology. After renal biopsy, a hemoglobin decrease of ≥10%, hypotension and transfusion occurred in 13.1%, 3.8% and 0.8% of patients, respectively. There were no cases of post-biopsy renal artery embolism, nephrectomy, or death. The composite complication rate was 16.0%. The incidence of post-biopsy complications was similar between physicians with ≥3 years and <3 years of clinical nephrology experience (12.5% vs. 16.8%, p = 0.64). Furthermore, the post-biopsy composite complication rates were similar between physicians with ≥6 months and <6 months of clinical nephrology experience (16.3% vs. 15.6%, p > 0.99). Under attending nephrologist supervision, a physician with short clinical nephrology experience can safely perform renal biopsy.

Keywords: clinical experience; complications; nephrologist; renal biopsy; supervision.