HDCN Article Review/Hyperlink

Matyas JR, Rattner JB, Benediktsson H

Enhanced glomerular retrieval for renal biopsies

Am J Kidney Dis (Jun) 27:834-843 1996

A substantial number of glomeruli obtained in a percutaneous renal biopsy, up to 55%, are loose on the surface of the biopsy core and usually lost in processing. This fascinating article describes means of recovering these additional glomeruli which are sometimes better preserved than those that remain in the core proper! Immobilizing the "lost" glomeruli on membrane substrates provides material very suitable for further study by light, electron microscopy, or immunofluorescence microscopy. These newly described techniques maximize the number of glomeruli obtained at biopsy and also make available additional material for diagnostic and physiological studies, and archiving. Figure 1, showing the glomeruli present on the surface of a biopsy core, will change our whole concept of what occurs during a renal biopsy procedure. (Kim Solez, M.D., University of Alberta, Canada)