Renal biopsy
What it is
- The only way to determine the lesion, the activity, and the chronicity - and the last two decide whether treatment is worth its toxicity
- Percutaneous, ultrasound-guided, spring-loaded 16-18G needle; lower pole of the left kidney
- Three preparations from the same core:
- Light microscopy (H&E, PAS, silver, trichrome, Congo red)
- Immunofluorescence (IgG, IgA, IgM, C3, C1q, kappa, lambda, C4d in transplants)
- Electron microscopy - deposits and foot process effacement
- *Adequacy: >=10 glomeruli for light microscopy (>=25 for a confident focal lesion), >=2 for immunofluorescence and EM*
12 more sections, plus exam facts
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