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Problems in Histopathological Technique
Prepared by
ROY ELLIS
IMVS Division of Pathology
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Woodville Road, Woodville, South Australia 5011
Email: roy.ellis@imvs.sa.gov.au
To obtain a section from tissues which are often brittle after processing.
This is often the case with tissues which contain a lot of blood or colloid such as spleen or thyroid.
This
section stained Haematoxylin and Eosin shows a deliciously brittle
blood clot which are always difficult to cut. They often end up like
this broken and curled.
One solution is to apply cotton wool or gauze soaked in warm water
to the surface of the block for a few seconds.
Then try to cut a section.
If that doesn’t work
Soak the block in warm, soapy water for a few minutes.
Place the block on ice for a few seconds
Then cut a section again
Then look at the result.
With a bit of look it should look something like this. A far better result I think you will all agree.
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© Roy C. Ellis 2002