Objectives: This study aims to determine the incidence of complications associated with ultrasound-guided percutaneous native renal biopsies. It also aims to determine the association between the occurrence of complications and the following factors, if present: age, sex, serum creatinine, platelet count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, prothrombin time, partial thromboplastin time, international normalized ratio (INR), history of hypertension or diabetes, pre-biopsy blood pressure, renal length, biopsy laterality, and number of needle passes.

Methods: This was a retrospective multivariate analysis research done in a tertiary medical specialty center involving all patients aged 19 years and older who underwent ultrasound-guided percutaneous native kidney biopsy from July 2012 to June 2015. Data were gathered through a review of charts and electronic radiology and laboratory databases.

Results: A total of 984 patients were included. Overall incidence of complications detected by routine post-biopsy ultrasound was 51.7%, with only 1.0% classified as major. Factors shown to have statistically significant association with the development of complications were female sex, higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure, longer partial thromboplastin time, and shorter renal length by ultrasound.

Conclusion: Although there are no absolute contraindications to performing the procedure, and the decision to perform it rests on the clinician’s judgment of whether the risks outweigh the benefits and on the patient’s consent, following a nationwide protocol would help the clinician comprehensively assess whether the patient is a good candidate for the procedure, educate him or her on the potential complications, and address modifiable risk factors.

Key words: ultrasound, renal biopsy, NKTI, percutaneous

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