[Percutaneous biopsy of the kidney in children (technical aspects)]

The paper analyzes 111 percutaneous kidney biopsies done over the last six years in 107 children (sixty-two patients were female and forty-five male), aged from 1 to 18 years (mean 9.5 years). The authors evaluate advantages of percutaneous biopsy of kidney in obtained an adequate tissue sample for histopathological diagnosis as compared to technical problems and complications regularly associated with the method. All biopsies were performed under local anaesthesia with Tru-Cut[symbol: see text] needles (14 gauge). In 107 biopsy specimens (96.4%) the tissue sample was adequate for histopathological analysis. Following the biopsy, the kidney was routinely scanned to detect a hemato-urinoma. Complications occur in sixteen patients (14.4%). Percutaneous kidney biopsy in children is a safe an reliable technique for obtaining adequate samples of renal tissue for histopathological analysis.