I guess I just need to ask for my own curiosity -

Don't they do autopsies at Valley Children's
Hospital? You can get most these tissues from
an autopsy. Though pancreas may be slightly
autolyzed, so you need it from a body that
has not been dead for a long time. The
small intestine usually is autolyzed from
an autopsy, so we usually get that from
surgery.

If your autopsy service and/or residents
are anything like ours, just telling them
once what you need, or giving them a list, 
does NOT work. They are too busy trying
to get the autopsy done, and they
forget about the list. Not intentionally.
Just because it is not an in-your-face
demand/need.

We find it works best when you find out
that there is going to be an autopsy -
fill up a container with formalin,
write the tissues you need on the lid,
and place the container on the table
where they will be dissecting out
the organs. They tend to remember.

This works well in the grossing area
of surgical pathology.

Now, for some staining hints:

For Myelin, you can use a Luxol Fast Blue
(LFB)(also called Kluver)(which you may not 
have the dye), the Weil procedure (which you 
may have the hematoxylin dye but may not have the
potassium ferricyanide for the differentiator),
but you can also do a trichrome stain.
Try either Gomori or Masson. Most labs
do one or the other for liver or kidney
biopsies. It does work for myelin.

Personally, I like the LFB best. You can
use any counterstain, so a PAS or nuclear
fast red works very well.

Other than buying mucicarmine or LFB from 
a vendor, or "borrowing" some from another 
hospital, I don't have any suggestions.

If you would like a procedure, let me know
with your fax number, and I'll send you a
copy of ours.

Peggy A. Wenk, HTL(ASCP)
William Beaumont Hospital
Royal Oak, MI 48073

MICHELLE LOWE wrote:
> 
> HELP!
> I am in despirate need for tissues for my HT exam.  I
> thought that I had some contacts but things aren't
> really happening with them...can anyone help?  I'll
> take and/or buy the tissues.  Here is a list of what I
> need:
> 
>     Lung
>     Pancreas
>     Spleen
>     Tonsil (already have)
>     Esophagus
>     Kidney
>     Skin (already have)
>     Small intestine
>     Spinal Cord
> 
> All tissues must be at least 2.5 x 1.5 cm in size.
> Wet tissue perferred, but I'll take blocks too.  Also,
> does anyone have a good procedure and vendor for the
> reagents of a Mucicarmine and Myelin stain?  We do not
> perform these stains at my facility and I only have 1
> reference for the stain.
> 
> Thanks in advance to everyone,
> Michelle Lowe
> lowzey@yahoo.com
> Valley Children's Hospital
> Madera, CA  93638
> 559/353-8490
> 
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