[Histonet] Iron demonstration in smears

[Cheryl]

In my experience open time is very long, having stained slides that were years old with consistent results to those stained within days of collection.  Staining specificity and 'detail' depends more on your staining method than on storage time.  If you make your reagents up in bulk or purchase pre-made, and if you stain at room temp or microwave, your open time will be shorter due to reduced sensitivity of the test method. 
   
  One group I worked for researched FE++ staining sensitivity for a REALLY long time and found that making the reagents up fresh EACH AND EVERY TIME proved beneficial (weigh out the reagents and store them in sealed dry alliquots for speed on clinical benches) and once constitututed, heat (temp??) in an H2O bath to temp before staining for uniformity, using mixed reagent only once immediately after preparation for one batch.  This overcame any storage issues where we could reproduce staining several years after dry-storing squash, smear and touch preps at room temp filed with our archive H&Es.
   
  I do not have a copy of the procedure or reference but if anyone is interested I'd be happy to try to find it again. 
   
  We had another process of spinning down aspirates at a certain speed (2800 rpm I think??) for ten minutes and the spicules layered above the red cells. These were siphoned off and manipulated on skin burn dressing before fixing/blocking to create much cleaner aspirate blocks.  One of the pathologist in the group pattented a spin tube with a screw-off bottom just for this but orange topped 10ml slant bottomed tubes folks use to transport RPMS and such work just fine (sealed tops)
   
  Hope this helps a bit--
   
  Cheryl Kerry
  Full Staff Inc.

"Houston, Ronnie" <Ronnie_Houston <@t> bshsi.com> wrote:
  
One of our pathologists is asking how long can smears be left at room
temperature before being stained for hemosiderin; he is primarily concerned
with bone marrow and urine preps.

Thanks
ronnie

Ronnie Houston
Director of Anatomic Pathology
Bon Secours HealthPartners Laboratories
5801 Bremo Road
Richmond, VA 23226
(804) 2877972
(804) 2877906 - fax
ronnie_houston <@t> bshsi.com






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