Massive intrahepatic hemorrhage following routine liver biopsy in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis treated with methotrexate.

Massive intrahepatic hemorrhage occurred in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) after a routine liver biopsy done to assess possible methotrexate (MTX) hepatotoxicity. Major complications of liver biopsy occur about once in every 600 biopsies, and mortality from liver biopsy has been reported. Life threatening hepatic toxicity occurs rarely during low dose MTX administration, and it is unclear whether routine liver biopsies identify patients at high risk for these complications. Until the relative risks of liver biopsy and serious MTX liver toxicity are better defined, the use of routine liver biopsies should be recommended only after careful consideration of potential procedural complications in patients with RA treated with MTX.