Liver Biopsy

It is not a surgery; it is performed by entering through the skin (percutaneous). While the patient lies on their back, the area under the right rib where the procedure will be performed is numbed with local anesthesia. Generally, under ultrasound guidance, a millimetric strip of tissue is taken from the liver with a special needle within seconds.

Before the biopsy, blood coagulation values (PT, aPTT, Platelets) must absolutely be checked. The patient must generally stop taking aspirin or other blood thinners 5-7 days before the procedure under doctor supervision and must be fasting on the morning of the procedure.

Because the liver is a highly vascularized organ, the patient is kept under observation in the hospital for at least 4-6 hours, lying on the needle insertion site (on their right side), as a precaution against the risk of bleeding after the biopsy.