Risk factors of pneumothorax and hemorrhage in lung biopsy: a single institution experience

CT-guided transthoracic lung biopsy is widely used in pulmonary lesions diagnosis. This technique rarely entails severe complications such as pneumothorax and pulmonary hemorrhage which call for adequate candidates screening. The aim of our study is to statistically assess risk factors related to these two main complications, and determine the best diagnostic workup. This retrospective study includes 110 patients who underwent CT-guided transthoracic biopsy of a pulmonary lesion. Rates of pneumothorax and pulmonary hemorrhage, as well as their severity, were evaluated, and a correlation with factors related to patients, lesions and biopsy technique were statistically analyzed. Higher rates of complications are significantly found with multiple punctures (pneumothorax risk multiplied by 7.4), longer intra-parenchymal needle tract (5 and 7% higher risk of pneumothorax and hemorrhage for every 1 mm increase in depth), and with smaller lesions (2 and 5% lower risk respectively for pneumothorax and hemorrhage for every 1 cm increase in lesion size). The presence of an interposing rib is associated with a higher rate of hemorrhage. Transthoracic lung biopsy is a minimally invasive technique. However, the presence of associated risk factors must lead to consider another diagnostic method.