Correlation between coagulation profile findings and bleeding complications after ultrasound-guided biopsies: 434 cases (1993-1996)

Medical records of 434 consecutive dogs (n=310) and cats (n=124) that recei ved coagulation studies prior to ultrasound-guided biopsy procedures betwee n January 1993 and June 1996 were reviewed for bleeding complications, Mino r complications occurred in 21.9% of cases. Major complications occurred in 6% of the cases. Significant bleeding complications were observed in throm bocytopenic cases (P=0.0001), Dogs with a prolonged one-stage prothrombin t ime (OSPT) (P=0.031) and cats with prolonged activated partial thromboplast in time (aPTT) (P=0.024) were more likely to have complications than patien ts with normal values. Adequate tissue for histopathological diagnosis was obtained in 96.3% of cases. The likelihood of complication was smaller when the liver was biopsied than when the kidney was biopsied (n=259; P=0.0327) . Ultrasound-guided biopsy of intracavitary structures is an effective and relatively safe procedure, but delay of the procedure should be considered when thrombocytopenia is present in the patient.