During a kidney biopsy — also called renal biopsy — your doctor removes a small piece of kidney tissue to examine under a microscope for signs of damage or disease.
Your doctor may recommend a kidney biopsy to diagnose a suspected kidney problem, determine the severity of kidney disease or monitor treatment for kidney disease. You also may need a kidney biopsy if you've had a kidney transplant that's not working properly.
Why it's done
A kidney biopsy may be done to:
- Diagnose a kidney problem that can't otherwise be identified
- Help develop treatment plans based on the kidney's condition
- Determine how quickly kidney disease is progressing
- Determine the extent of damage from kidney disease or another disease
- Evaluate how well treatment for kidney disease is working
- Monitor the health of a transplanted kidney or find out why a transplanted kidney isn't working properly
- Blood in the urine (hematuria) originating from the kidney
- Protein in the urine (proteinuria) that's excessive, rising or accompanied by other signs of kidney disease
- Problems with kidney function, leading to excessive waste products in the blood
Your doctor may recommend a kidney biopsy based on the results of blood or urine tests that show:
Not everyone with these problems needs a kidney biopsy. The decision is based on your signs and symptoms, test results, and overall health.