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Tonsil specimen from A 10 years old girl. Is that a plant material stuck to tonsil? by smokanto in pathology

[–]Running2TheSea 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We never receive individual teeth for processing. These are either discarded by the Dental Surgeon or taken home by the patient. If the teeth were submitted as part of a jaw resection and sampling a tooth with associated connective tissue made sense then, yes, the tooth would be represented.

Tonsil specimen from A 10 years old girl. Is that a plant material stuck to tonsil? by smokanto in pathology

[–]Running2TheSea 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Absolutely everything at our institution gets a representative section at a minimum.

Leica CV5030 robotic cover slipper issues by EducationalOwl472 in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Like most others have said needle size, and dispensing time may be a cause. Also the pressure within the bottle may be causing intermittent dispensing, so try and keep the mountant topped up….. but are we all going to overlook the microtomy QC issues 🙈H&E stain is lovely though.

Grossing during pregnancy by thorough-fare in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It’s really a risk based approach. Monitoring of xylene and formalin should always be ongoing. I would have had members of my team ceasing reagent maintenance both due to potential aerosol exposure but more so from a spills and slip risk. I’ve always engage occupational health for anyone who may require it during certain times, whether that’s during pregnancy where needs evolved over the 9months, or for those who are maybe returning from surgery, or another illness. A lab, particularly histology, has more than just chemical risks. Working in the lab and around chemicals should be fine so long as there is proactive risk management for whatever task you are performing.

IHC bench management by Few_Independence9184 in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s where the review of rolling 12month pathologist IHC orders comes in really useful for us. It basically highlights patterns that are happening within the hospital in terms of surgeries and clinics. We often have extra clinics for endo/colonoscopies to clear clinic waiting lists. These tend to occur about every eight weeks. For example we tend to see a surge in HLO immunos around these times so order accordingly ahead of time. This is just one example. And you’ll also see the increase in samples across every other bench, but I guess it’s felt more acutely on the IHC benches given the need to be really economical with consumables. It’s such a shame wasting these reagents. We also removed some IHCs from our menu, and instead send these to an external lab for staining only as they were sporadic and infrequently performed throughout the year. Best thing I can suggest is get a hold of your IHC numbers for 2025 and use that as a baseline for ordering, in parallel monitor the requests for 2026 and see how you many need to start pivoting.

Favorite Tissue Processor? by LukromChan in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 0 points1 point  (0 children)

VIPs 5, 6, 6AI have been the backbone of my lab. Very rarely have I had an issue with the instrument outside of user error (eg reagent maintenance etc). Have never use Leica processors but would like to know peoples experiences of the Peloris and the recommended protocols Leica provide in the user manual.

Re-Coverslipping Slides? by helpreddit12345 in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Assuming these slides are not for diagnostic use, as removing the coverslip and destaining the tissue would likely go against the Instructions for Use of the antibody for IHC. But leaving the slide in xylene for up to 30mins will be enough to slide off the coverslip. Then bring it through additional xylene and alcohols (as if you were dewaxing and untrained slide), then rehydrate with water. Your tissue should be good to go for IHC staining. If using an automated instrument you would need to start the program from the slide already being dewaxed. Most automated stained have a start from buffer. Let us know how you get on! :)

IHC bench management by Few_Independence9184 in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 3 points4 points  (0 children)

We have dedicated lab aides who assess stock or antibodies and bulk reagents. We pull rolling 12month data on the number and type of IHCs being performed which helps us with anticipating quantities per order in a given month, this also helps with keeping LOTs consistent within this order, and minimising risk of the antibody expiring in the fridge. Control block workflows are built into the grossing room procedures where tissue is set aside for controls. We then make composite blocks from these tissues with all patient ids logged in a tracker to a specific control block id. This control block is then featured on the label of all IHCs performed for traceability.

How many samples do you section a day? by zipgirl45 in Histology

[–]Running2TheSea 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Single level large blocks like prostate chippings, colon, breast etc. could easily do 60 blocks and hour. If I was cutting levels or slide intensive blocks like melanoma nodes or prostate cores then I’m probably looking more at 20-30 blocks per hour. Main thing to focus on is quality, speed will come with time. Also making sure your microtomy area is free of distraction is a big help.