Native kidney biopsy in pregnancy and postpartum: A single centre experience from India

With the advances in medicine and imaging, renal biopsy is increasingly utilised for identifying pathologies during pregnancy.

This retrospective observational study aimed to assess indications and complications among 32 women who underwent native renal biopsies during pregnancy and postpartum from 2015 to 2022.

The commonest indications for performing the biopsy were nephrotic syndrome and acute kidney injury during pregnancy or immediately postpartum. Most (62.5%) had biopsies performed in the antenatal period. Lupus nephritis was the most common finding on biopsy, and there were no procedure-related serious adverse effects. Most pregnancies were complicated by hypertensive disorders and preterm birth. All except six women with perinatal loss had healthy neonates.

Even as kidney biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosing renal pathologies, it should be reserved for women where management in pregnancy would be altered by the result.