Use of a stiff guidewire in transjugular liver biopsy in patients with a pronounced angle of the suprahepatic veins.

In the performance of a transvascular liver biopsy, the Trucut-type transjugular liver biopsy set is advance over a multipurpose catheter place in the suprahepatic vein. Occasionally there is a sharp bend between the suprahepatic veins and the inferior vein cava and the multipurpose catheter does not provide sufficient support to track the biopsy access set. To deal with this problem we describe the use of a stiff guidewire for an easy introduction of the biopsy set.