Clinical significance of liver biopsy in diagnosis and treatment of liver disease

Objective To assess the clinical significance of liver biopsy for diagnosis and treatment of liver disease.Methods Patients with obscure liver disease who underwent liver biopsy under B-ultrasound guidance at our hospital between 2007 and 2011 were retrospectively analyzed.Results Sixteen cases with obscure liver disease were diagnosed after liver biopsy.Among them,four cases(25.0%) were diagnosed as drug induced hepatitis,four(25.0%) as fatty liver disease,two(12.5%) as autoimmune hepatitis,two(12.5%) as hepatitis B virus infection,one(6.3%) as acute viral cholestatic hepatitis,and one(6.3%) as Schistosomiasis liver disease.In the two remaining cases(12.5%),no specific diagnosis was confirmed by the liver biopsy.Among the 20 chronic hepatitis B patients(all of whom presented with abnormal liver function at six month follow-up,high viral load,and alanine aminotransferase(ALT) level lower than twice the upper limit),13(65.0%) had at least moderate intensity hepatic inflammation(greater than or equal to grade II) that necessitated antiviral therapy.Furthermore,the majority(69.2%) of these patients represented the 20-40 year-old age category.Conclusion Liver biopsy is an important approach for diagnosing the cause of liver function abnormalities and plays an important role in designing a suitable treatment strategy.