Bone marrow biopsies are used to determine if the marrow is functioning properly and to screen people for a number of diseases. The procedure is done on an outpatient basis and uses a long needle to pierce a section of bone to extract a marrow sample for analysis.
What is Bone Marrow?
Bone marrow is substance inside of bones that produces red blood cells, white blood cells and blood platelets. Red blood cells carry oxygen, white blood cells fight infections and blood platelets help blood coagulate to stop bleeding.
Function
Bone marrow tests are used to detect a number of diseases. Analysis of bone marrow can determine if a person suffers from anemia--a shortage of red blood cells--or neutropenia, which is a shortage of disease-fighting white cells. It can also detect cancers like leukemia and cancers of the bone.
Location
Most bone marrow samples are taken from the pelvic bone, since it is large and easily accessible, and the bone is usually accessed through the lower back. Samples are also taken on occasion from the breast bone.
Preparation
To prepare a patient for a test, a physician will clean and sterilize the area where the bone will be accessed and administer a local anesthetic before making a small incision in the skin where the needle will be inserted into the bone. The procedure usually takes about 20 minutes from start to finish.
Follow-Up
After the marrow sample is extracted, a bandage is placed over the incision and kept in place for 24 hours. The area may be tender for a while and patients are encouraged to avoid heavy lifting or vigorous physical activity for several days afterward.
Aftermath
Depending on the types of test being done, people will usually have the test results back in several days. The results will determine whether any further tests or procedures are necessary.
Tags: blood cells, blood platelets, Bone Marrow, marrow sample, number diseases, several days
