Applications and new understandings of protocol biopsy during kidney transplantation / 中华器官移植杂志

ABSTRACT

Protocol biopsy (PB) is a planned needle biopsy of transplanted kidney and pathological observation for timely diagnosing the potential complications in transplanted kidney and guiding clinical interventions and adjusting immunosuppression regimen before an onset of dysfunction of transplanted kidney.With accurate information, it may grasp the baseline data of transplanted kidney histopathology.If detected early, timely measures may avert the existence of subclinical rejection or viral infection, avoid inflammation or injury and prevent various complications to ensure a better prognosis of transplanted kidney.At the same time, it is imperative to recognize the disadvantages of procedural biopsy, such as invasiveness, time consuming, greater patient discomfort and medical expenditure.This review focused upon the advantages and disadvantages of PB and its clinical application value.In light of the latest advances of clinical researches, favorable factors of PB are optimized for better long-term functional survival of transplanted kidney.