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Liver biopsy is the gold standard for grading and staging disease in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and is important for determining the timing of treatment. Biopsy is usually not indicated for patients with obvious cirrhosis, but, in many instances it reveals advanced fibrosis and early cirrhosis. Although the procedure is safe overall, it can cause serious complications, including bleeding and — rarely — death.
To determine biopsy complication rates among patients with advanced liver disease, researchers collected liver biopsy data from the HALT-C trial. This randomized, placebo-controlled study examined the safety and efficacy of pegylated interferon therapy among adults with chronic HCV infection and advanced fib…