EX1: SUPPLIES & EQUIPMENT IN THE HISTOPATHOLOGY LABORATORY

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. ROTARY MICROTOME

2. Used for cutting tissue sections / used for sectioning tissues.

   Used in obtaining sections from paraffin-embedded samples

3. Remove excess paraffin after cutting. Blot or wipe dry after use. Oil all moving parts of the microtome.

   Daily cleaning from paraffin debris

   Yearly preventive maintenance

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. CRYOSTAT/ CRYOCUT / FREEZING

   MICROTOME

2. Used for cutting frozen sections

   (Its reduced temperature increases the sample’s hardness)

3. Clean the rotary microtome inside the cryostat. Maintain temperature at -20°C (to prepare for any STAT procedures). Make sure knife is fixed to the knife holder.

Microtomy debris must be removed from the Cryostat

chamber

Knife and exposed surfaces must be cleaned with 70%

alcohol

Place outside ref chamber to avoid heat-expansion and

cold-contraction effects

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. AUTOMATED EMBEDDING UNIT (TISSUE EMBEDDING CENTER)

2. Makes embedding processed tissue that has undergone prior fixing, dehydration, clearing and infiltration.

   Used in moderate to heavy workloads in preparing wax tissue blocks.

   Minimizes wax accumulation.

3. Remember to switch off before removing plug and unplug while cleaning. Clean and wipe dry embedding molds after use. Maintain in a clean condition. Use only minimal quantities of solvent in absorbent cloth. Use plastic or wooden implements when scraping wax off.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. AUTOMATIC TISSUE PROCESSOR

2. Automatically fixes, dehydrates, clears and infiltrates tissue specimens. Used to prepare tissue samples for sectioning and microscopic examination in the laboratory.

3. Clean all containers and beakers of the machine and change or rundown solutions once a week. Check temperature of paraffin bath from time to time (temperature must be maintained at 2-5°C above melting point of paraffin wax).

   Change the reagent when usage limit is reached before running the next process.

   To obtain well processed blocks;

   Before exchanging fuses:

   Switch off the main switch

   Make sure instrument is unplugged

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. BINOCULAR LIGHT MICROSCOPE

2. Microscopic examination and interpretation of tissue

   specimens. Used to magnify small tissue specimens and observe a specimen at a cellular level.

3. Set microscope to scanner/LPO when not in use. Wipe oil off on lenses after using.

   Lenses: Should be kept away from anything abrasive especially when cleaning

   In cleaning: Use moistened lens paper with lens cleaning solution and clean in circular motion

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. DISPOSABLE KNIFE WITH ADAPTOR (MICROTOME KNIFE/BLADE HOLDER)

2. Used for actual cutting of tissue sections. Used to accommodate

   disposable blades for paraffin and cryostat sectioning to allow histologist maximum flexibility.

3. Sharpen blunt or dull ends of knife. If disposable, no need for sharpening. This equipment is less susceptible to nicks and

   normal wear and tear. Maintenance-free and durable.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. TISSUE CASSETTE/TISSUE RECEPTACLE/TISSUE CAPSULE (EMBEDDING CASSETTES)

2. Holds the tissue with label in place during processing. These tissue cassettes hold and identify tissue samples in processing, embedding, and sectioning procedures.

3. Remove excess paraffin after using. Blot or wipe dry. Soaked in Xylene.

To remove the dehydrating agent: Do not overload to avoid compressed tissues which will then be difficult as it cannot be adequately dehydrated.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. GLASS SLIDES WITH COVERSLIP

2. It is where the specimen is mounted and cover slipped. These are used for microscope specimen observation.

3. No maintenance since it is not reused. Make sure to wipe with clean cloth before use and it is free of dust and scratches.

   These should be clean and fingerprint-free and thus, held by their edges.

In cleaning: Use 70% ethanol Afterwards, dry with a lint-free tissue or lens

tissue.

Non-reusable

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. TEASING NEEDLE

2. Used to remove or tease out folds in the tissue section. Straighten tissue section. Readjust samples.

3. Must be free from rust and contamination from other tissue sections. Cleaned after each use. The stainless steel needle and durable handle must be sanitized well to prepare it for next or future usage.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. TISSUE FLOATATION BATH OR FLOATING OUT BATH

2. Flattens or spreads out tissue sections. Used to assist with the handling of samples in the laboratory allowing the manipulation and location onto slides.

3. Temperature must be maintained at 45-50°C. Keep dry or free of oil (from albumin). Stored in clean and ventilated room (<80% humidity).

   Keep it away from flammable chemicals and avoid high heat areas and prolonged LCD contact.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. SLIDE CARRIER/HOLDER AND STAINING DISH

2. Staining Dish: Container used for staining solutions.

   Slide Carrier/Holder: Carry slides that are for staining or heat fixing.

   It is used to hold microscope slides during staining procedures.

3. Staining dish: Must be clean and free from contamination from other staining solutions.

   Slide carriers: Must be washed with soap and water and rinsed with distilled H2O after use. (1% acid alcohol may also be used)

   It should be cleaned properly for maintenance. Follow the suitable number of slides to be used when handling the equipment/material.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. COPLIN JAR

2. Used for cell block / pap smear / cell cytology techniques.

   Used to stain specimens in lesser quantities

   For cytologic studies

3. Filter solutions before staining specimens. Clean with detergent and rinse with distilled H2O. Clean after each use.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. ELECTRIC PARAFFIN WAX DISPENSER / THERMAL JACKET WITH PARAFFIN PITCHER (ELECTRIC PARAFFIN PITCHER)

2. Melts the paraffin wax used for embedding.

3. Check temperature setting and filter paraffin wax. Ensure that there is no debris left in the equipment. Filter out wax and check temperature constantly.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. ELECTRIC PARAFFIN BATH

2. Where processed tissue section is placed prior to embedding; part of the embedding process. Used for immersing processed tissues.

3. Check temperature setting and filter paraffin wax. Accuracy of temperature is vital since it might greatly affect the processing of immersed samples. Temperature should be checked from time to time.

1. Identify the material or equipment presented in the picture

2. Give its uses, purposes, or application in histopathologic or cytologic techniques

3. Give 2-5 sentences on how to maintain the material and equipment in good condition

1. ELECTRIC PARAFFIN KNIFE AND FORCEP WARMER

2. Electric Paraffin Knife: Seals label of paraffin block.

   Forcep warmer: Warms the forcep so tissue won't stick to the wax.

   Used to pick up the wax. Ensure that tissues won't adhere to it

3. Keep Heated. Ensure that there is no leftover wax from previous

   use. The equipment must be cleaned well prior to next use/test.

What are the data that should be included in the equipment maintenance log in histopathology section?

How would you label reagent and stain containers in histopathology section?

How do you decontaminate materials and equipment in histopathology section?