Needle aspiration is the most common method of taking an abdominal wall fat pad biopsy.

The health care provider cleans the skin on your belly area. Numbing medicine will be applied on or injected into the area. A needle is placed through the skin and into the fat pad under the skin. A small piece of the fat pad is removed with the needle. It is sent to a laboratory for analysis.

No special preparation is usually necessary. However, follow any specific instructions your provider gives you.

You may have some mild discomfort or feel pressure when the needle is inserted. Afterward, the area may feel tender or be bruised for several days.

The procedure is done most often to test for amyloidosis. Amyloidosis is a disorder in which abnormal proteins build up in tissues and organs, impairing their function. Clumps of the abnormal proteins are called amyloid deposits.

Diagnosing the disease in this way may avoid the need for a biopsy of a nerve or an internal organ, which is a more difficult procedure.

The fat pad tissues are normal.

In the case of amyloidosis, abnormal results mean there are amyloid deposits.

There is a slight risk for infection, bruising, or slight bleeding.

Amyloidosis - abdominal wall fat pad biopsy; Abdominal wall biopsy; Biopsy - abdominal wall fat pad

Gertz MA. Amyloidosis. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 179.

Updated by: Jacob Berman, MD, MPH, Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.