SPECIMEN PREPARATION

Arevalo, Balbis, Beronical, G. Buenaventura,

Castillo, Gajisan, Labsan
 A sample for medical testing
 Crucial in clinical management decisions and
provide important prognostic data
 Nodal in a patient’s illness; shapes the choice
of relevant medical and surgical therapies and
determining follow-up routines
 To identify the criteria for rejection of
specimen
 To identify the different materials used for
gross examination of specimens
 To familiarize with the general concepts of
describing specimens
 To identify the concepts and general
procedures of sectioning the most common
surgical specimens
 To create a specimen worksheet
 Unlabelled specimens
 Mislabelled specimens
 Incorrect container/ wrong preservative used
 Insufficient specimen for procedure
 Unsuitable specimen for procedure
 Cutting tools/ Standard dissecting kits
 Specimen container
 Labelling materials
 Tissue cassettes
 Properly examine the specimen, the
container, and the label
 It must have the following :
◦ Patient Name - First and last (no nicknames or
abbreviations
◦ Secondary Identifier - Medical record number, date
of birth, or other unique identifier
◦ Date and time of collection
◦ Initials of collector
 Follow the criteria for rejection of a specimen
1. Prepare the specimen in a preferred
uncontaminated area
2. Measure the dimensions
3. Weigh the specimen (round off to the
nearest 0.1g)
4. Describe the appearance of the specimen
 Measurements in :
 Length
 Width
 Diameter
 Weight
 Appearance based on:
◦ Color
◦ Consistency
 Dissect the specimen into 1.0 cm thick
sections
 Specimens should be squared
◦ Place specimens into tissue cassettes . Must fit the
cassettes (not more than 0.3 cm in thickness)
◦ Cassettes must not bulge
 Label the cassettes
 Always wear PPE
 Maintain cleanliness in the lab
 Always clean a microtome blade before and
after use
 Never throw the specimens and their
respective container until it is already cleared
for disposal
 Always note the preservatives used and
observe proper maintenance (temp, pH, etc.)