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Bone Biopsy Needle



 Submitted by Medical Health Test Team on July 9, 2010
Bone Biopsy Needle

The bones form the structural frame of the human body. The rigidity of the human body is a function of the bones in the body. Our bones are made up of mineralized tissue that is of a honeycomb design. This design allows the bone to be extremely strong and remain light enough to allow normal movement to be performed on a day to day basis. The central part of the bones is made up of bone marrow. Bone marrow is where the red blood cells are produced. Like every other part of the body, the bones are also susceptible to conditions such as an infection and diseases like cancer.

A bone biopsy is a process where a small fragment of bone is removed from the site of a suspected disease or infection. The same fragment of bone is then sent to a laboratory for testing to see what exactly is affecting the bone. There are two common methods for conducting a bone biopsy. One method used involves cutting through the skin to directly access the bone. This is a process known as an open biopsy and is usually done with the patient under local or complete anesthesia. The other type of bone biopsy is the needle biopsy which is conducted by inserting a thick needle through the skin and body tissue and into the bone. The needle is then twisted in order to cut off a fragment of bone and then withdrawn from the body. This procedure is also done under local or general anesthesia. For both procedures, doctors prefer to use bones in easily accessible areas and particularly in areas where there are no major organs or major blood vessels. This reduces the risk of perforating any of these organs or blood vessels and reduces the overall risk factor for this test. For many such tests, the testing location is near the site of any abnormality detected in an x-ray or in a CT scan. These scanning machines may be used during the test to help guide the professional who is conducting the actual biopsy procedure. Using the live images received from any type of imaging system, the needle is guided into place and the sample is collected.

After the wound is dressed, the subject is free to return home unless some obvious health problem has been detected. It is common to feel pain after a needle bone biopsy; the pain usually lasts for up to a week.

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