[Histonet] silver question

[Bartlett, Jeanine]

All:
 
Has anyone experienced a problem with their Steiner's "fading" after a
period of time?  We had a slide that had been stained with the Steiner
procedure and it was very positive, however when it was reviewed at a
much later date it appeared negative.  Another section was stained and
it was positive.  I know that leaving the sections for a long time in
xylene before they are coverslipped can lead to fading but wouldn't this
be apparent when the slides were originally viewed?  
 
Any suggestions?
 
Thanks!
Jeanine Bartlett, HT(ASCP)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Infectious Disease Pathology Activity
1600 Clifton Road, MS/G-32
Atlanta, GA 30333