Needle Biopsy of Bone and Marrow

Bone marrow examination is a valuable diagnostic aid which is widely used in the study of disease. The relative diagnostic merits and limitations of bone marrow aspiration as compared with bone marrow biopsy have been previously described¹and are generally appreciated. However, until 1958 when McFarland and Dameshek²described a simple technique for bone marrow biopsy using a Silverman needle, relatively few biopsies were done because of the attendant requisites of a surgical procedure. In 1959, Brody and Finch³reported their experience with 20 Silverman needle biopsies in patients in whom inadequate aspirates or dry taps had been obtained and concluded that the dry tap was the principal indication for the needle biopsy. In 1960, Westerman et al⁴described the specific diagnostic usefulness of 130 Silverman needle biopsies, and Pearson et al⁵demonstrated the adequacy of the biopsy technique in children. After these studies, Ley