Skin biopsySkin biopsy is a biopsy technique in which a skin lesion is removed to be sent to a pathologist to render a microscopic diagnosis. It is usually done under local anesthetic in a physician's office, and results are often available in 4 to 10 days. It is commonly performed by dermatologists. Skin biopsies are also done by family physicians, internists, surgeons, and other specialties.
Molecular diagnosticsMolecular diagnostics is a collection of techniques used to analyze biological markers in the genome and proteome, and how their cells express their genes as proteins, applying molecular biology to medical testing. In medicine the technique is used to diagnose and monitor disease, detect risk, and decide which therapies will work best for individual patients, and in agricultural biosecurity similarly to monitor crop- and livestock disease, estimate risk, and decide what quarantine measures must be taken.
NosologyNosology () is the branch of medical science that deals with the classification of diseases. Fully classifying a medical condition requires knowing its cause (and that there is only one cause), the effects it has on the body, the symptoms that are produced, and other factors. For example, influenza is classified as an infectious disease because it is caused by a virus, and it is classified as a respiratory infection because the virus infects and damages certain tissues in the respiratory tract.
HaematoxylinHaematoxylin or hematoxylin (ˌhiːməˈtɒksᵻlᵻn), also called natural black 1 or C.I. 75290, is a compound extracted from heartwood of the logwood tree (Haematoxylum campechianum) with a chemical formula of C16H14O6. This naturally derived dye has been used as a histologic stain, as an ink and as a dye in the textile and leather industry. As a dye, haematoxylin has been called palo de Campeche, logwood extract, bluewood and blackwood. In histology, haematoxylin staining is commonly followed by counterstaining with eosin.
Pap testThe Papanicolaou test (abbreviated as Pap test, also known as Pap smear (AE), cervical smear (BE), cervical screening (BE), or smear test (BE)) is a method of cervical screening used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in the cervix (opening of the uterus or womb) or colon (in both men and women). Abnormal findings are often followed up by more sensitive diagnostic procedures and, if warranted, interventions that aim to prevent progression to cervical cancer.
Body fluidBody fluids, bodily fluids, or biofluids, sometimes body liquids, are liquids within the human body. In lean healthy adult men, the total body water is about 60% (60–67%) of the total body weight; it is usually slightly lower in women (52–55%). The exact percentage of fluid relative to body weight is inversely proportional to the percentage of body fat. A lean man, for example, has about 42 (42–47) liters of water in his body.
Artifact (error)In natural science and signal processing, an artifact or artefact is any error in the perception or representation of any information introduced by the involved equipment or technique(s). In computer science, digital artifacts are anomalies introduced into digital signals as a result of digital signal processing. In microscopy, visual artifacts are sometimes introduced during the processing of samples into slide form.
Frozen section procedureThe frozen section procedure is a pathological laboratory procedure to perform rapid microscopic analysis of a specimen. It is used most often in oncological surgery. The technical name for this procedure is cryosection. The microtome device that cold cuts thin blocks of frozen tissue is called a cryotome. The quality of the slides produced by frozen section is of lower quality than formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissue processing. While diagnosis can be rendered in many cases, fixed tissue processing is preferred in many conditions for more accurate diagnosis.
Gross processingGross processing, "grossing" or "gross pathology" is the process by which pathology specimens undergo examination with the bare eye to obtain diagnostic information, as well as cutting and tissue sampling in order to prepare material for subsequent microscopic examination. Gross examination of surgical specimens is typically performed by a pathologist, or by a pathologists' assistant working within a pathology practice.
Soft tissueSoft tissue is all the tissue in the body that is not hardened by the processes of ossification or calcification such as bones and teeth. Soft tissue connects, surrounds or supports internal organs and bones, and includes muscle, tendons, ligaments, fat, fibrous tissue, lymph and blood vessels, fasciae, and synovial membranes. It is sometimes defined by what it is not – such as "nonepithelial, extraskeletal mesenchyme exclusive of the reticuloendothelial system and glia".
