[Histonet] RE: Histonet Digest, Vol 27, Issue 31
Tim Webster
twebster <@t> nmcinc.org
Wed Feb 22 06:25:43 CST 2006
Hi Bonnie
I use "Dragon Naturally Speaking" quite a lot in my home office. There is a
significant amount of time teaching it to recognize your voice, and
especially if you use lots of odd :) medical words such as "Microcytosis" and
"Menometrorrhagia", there is an even longer period. You will have to edit a
lot at first.
However- Once you get past that part, it writes pretty well. You also have
to adjust your dictation style and not watch the screen for the words to
appear. There is a lag time between you speaking and the software putting it
into context and displaying the sentence, so if you watch the screen, the
dictation is very slow and jumpy.
If you write a lot, then give it a shot. If you don't, you probably won't use
it.
Good luck
Tim Webster
Histology Specialist
Northwestern Medical Center
133 Fairfield Street
St Albans, VT 05478
(802) 524-1070 x4349 (Dept. & Voice mail)
twebster <@t> nmcinc.org
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-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
[mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of
histonet-request <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2006 1:36 PM
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Subject: Histonet Digest, Vol 27, Issue 31
Send Histonet mailing list submissions to
histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
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When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
than "Re: Contents of Histonet digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. voice recognition software (Bonnie Whitaker)
2. Re: 20 micron sections Cresyl Violet Acetate stained
(John A. Kiernan)
3. Oct-3/4 (Elaine Dooley)
4. sucrose sectioning (Steven Coakley)
5. Re: sucrose sectioning (RCHIOVETTI <@t> aol.com)
6. RE: AMACR (P504S) (Lori Harris) (lharris <@t> samhealth.org)
7. CD52 IHC (cforster)
8. Re: Sucrose Sectioning (RCHIOVETTI <@t> aol.com)
9. Re: voice recognition software (Michael LaFriniere)
10. Do you love your job? (Peggy Brask)
11. re: Oct-3/4 staining of seminomas (Carmen Contreras-Sesvold)
12. FW: ASCP Action Alert: High Priority Action Alert!! MUE
Proposal Could Undermine Quality Care, Devastate Clinical
Laboratories (Weems, Joyce)
13. A call to action for US AP/Histology professionals (Cheryl)
14. StarFrost Plus Slides for IHC (Kapoor, Sue)
15. immunohistochemistry fish tissue - help (Tamara Franz-Odendaal)
16. Re: Do you love your job? (Rene J Buesa)
17. wright-giemsa stain on tissue (dgaupp <@t> tulane.edu)
18. Re: wright-giemsa stain on tissue (Rene J Buesa)
19. Re: Do you love your job? (Jackie M O'Connor)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 13:04:24 -0600
From: "Bonnie Whitaker" <bwhitaker <@t> brownpathology.com>
Subject: [Histonet] voice recognition software
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <000601c63650$76f466d0$3601a8c0 <@t> brownpathology.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Hi Everyone,
A friend asked me to inquire about voice recognition software. Is anyone
out there using it? How well does it perform? Does anyone have any
experience with Dragon that they would be willing to share?
Thanks!
Bonnie Whitaker
Lab Manager
Brown & Associates Medical Laboratories
8076 El Rio
Houston, Texas 77054
713-741-6677
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 14:25:07 -0500
From: "John A. Kiernan" <jkiernan <@t> uwo.ca>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] 20 micron sections Cresyl Violet Acetate
stained
To: Patrick Laurie <plaurie <@t> benaroyaresearch.org>
Cc: "histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu"
<histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <43FA1793.165FD322 <@t> uwo.ca>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
There were 3 reasons for using 20um sections
(though 6um sections were also used in the paper
that you quote).
1. The spinal cords of interest were from people
who had died of ALS, and motor neurons were not
numerous. A thick section has more cells in it
than a thin one.(The control subjects had plenty
of motor neurons, of course, but the sections had
to be the same thickness for quantitative
comparisons.)
2. 20um was the thickest that was easily handled
with paraffin sections. For neuroanatomical work,
frozen sections are commonly cut at 40-80um for
Nissl staining.
3. You need to include as much neuron as possible
in the section, to show the shape and size.
We did not have trouble with sections coming off
the slides, which were coated (subbed) with
chrome-gelatin.
There was no difficulty with either the myelin
stain (iron-eriochrome cyanine R; Page's method)
or with the Nissl counterstain. Neutral red was
used because it contrasted well with the blue
myelin. If you're not interested in myelin you can
use any cationic dye as a Nissl stain. Cresyl
violet can be quite a fiddle; make sure you have a
certified batch of the dye. Neutral red or
toluidine blue (0.5%, pH 3.5 to 4) is easier to
use. H&E is not suitable for staining neurons.
--
-------------------------------
John A. Kiernan
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology
The University of Western Ontario
London, Canada N6A 5C1
kiernan[AT]uwo.ca
http://publish.uwo.ca/~jkiernan/
http://instruct.uwo.ca/anatomy/530/index.htm
_______________________________
Patrick Laurie wrote:
>
> Hi Histonet,
>
> My group is interested in doing an anterior horn alpha motor neuron
> count of ALS pts vs control. There is considerable literature about
> these techniques, which has been most helpful, but the devil is in the
> details.
>
> Most papers use 20um sections of the ventral horn stained with cresyl
> violet acetate, or iron-chromoxane cyanine R method for myelin
> (counterstained with .5% neutral red) (Dr. Kiernan's 1991 paper), or one
> of many other methods for staining. I have 3 questions. First of all,
> a technical question, how are 20um sections kept on the slides during
> staining? I have done some experimenting, and found it very difficult
> to keep them on.
>
> Secondly, how do the thick sections stain? The cresyl violet using will
> not differentiate very well (using the regressive version), and the H&E
> is too dark, I have yet to use any other method.
>
> And lastly, why 20um? Conventional neural histology seems to be done
> thicker, but usually not that thick. What would be the benefit for
> having sections that thick?
>
> Thanks Histonet,
>
> Patrick Laurie, HT (ASCP)
> Neurogenomics Laboratory
> Benaroya Research Institute
> 1201 9th Ave
> Seattle, Wa 98101
>
> _______________________________________________
> Histonet mailing list
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 14:51:34 -0500
From: "Elaine Dooley" <DOOLEEO <@t> shands.ufl.edu>
Subject: [Histonet] Oct-3/4
To: <Histonet <@t> pathology.swmed.edu>
Cc: Kenneth Iczkowski <ICZKOKA <@t> pathology.ufl.edu>
Message-ID: <s3f9d794.035 <@t> GW-FS1.SHANDS.UFL.EDU>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Dear Histonetters,
I have been having some trouble trying to get this antibody to stain
seminomas. It is Oct-3/4 a goat polyclonal antibody from Santa Cruz
Biotechnology. We also purchased their mouse anti-goat biotin
conjugated secondary.
Any quick hints on making this work. I have tried it on the Ventana
Benchmark (with changing the secondary antibody). I have tried
overnight incubations and staining entirely by hand. I have tried
Ventana's CC1 and also tried Cell Marque's trilogy for epitope retrial
but have not had any of the desired nuclear staining the antibody is
supposed to show.
Any helpful hints would be greatly appreciated.
Elaine Dooley
HTL
Shands Teaching Hospital
Gainesville FL
352-265-0111 ext 7-2117
------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 12:25:12 -0800 (PST)
From: Steven Coakley <sjchtascp <@t> yahoo.com>
Subject: [Histonet] sucrose sectioning
To: Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <20060220202512.39971.qmail <@t> web90210.mail.scd.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
I work with a scientist that never seems pleased with my cryosectioning of
fixed sucrose infiltrated liver. I have "tons" of experiance especially in
clinical, and Mohs with cryosectioning and am trying to fine-tune my
technique to research. I have reviewed, reviewed and reviewed material until
the information is giving me a headach.
Currectly I trim, fine trim on one section of blade the go to a fresh
section to obtain my final section that I pick up. I would greatly
appreciate any advice from those with experiance sectioning these tissues.
Thanks you all,
Steve
---------------------------------
Yahoo! Mail
Use Photomail to share photos without annoying attachments.
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 16:15:25 EST
From: RCHIOVETTI <@t> aol.com
Subject: Re: [Histonet] sucrose sectioning
To: sjchtascp <@t> yahoo.com, Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <26f.60d2e9f.312b8b6d <@t> aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
In a message dated 2/20/2006 1:26:21 PM US Mountain Standard Time,
sjchtascp <@t> yahoo.com writes:
> I work with a scientist that never seems pleased with my cryosectioning of
> fixed sucrose infiltrated liver.
Hi Steve,
I'm most familiar with using sucrose as a cryoprotectant / infiltration
medium when doing cryoultramicrotomy and immunolabeling at the EM level. In
those
cases, sucrose is normally used at around 2.3M concentration after light
aldehyde fixation, and it usually cuts well at around -90 C (the
cryosectioning
kits for ultramicrotomes use liquid nitrogen, and they allow you to cut at
very
low temps).
I never could get sucrose to cut well above about -60 to -65 C. It just
turned to mush and became a sticky, stringy mess.
A normal cryostat w/ independent specimen cooling should get down to about
-50 C, but I'd think you'd be right on the edge of being able to use sucrose.
Unless there's some reason not to use the stuff, maybe you could try O.C.T.
or a similar cryo medium designed to be firm at higher temps (say round -20
to
-30 C).
Good luck!
Cheers,
Bob
Robert (Bob) Chiovetti, Ph.D.
The Microscope Works
Arizona's Microscopy Resource
132 North Elster Drive
Tucson, AZ 85710-3212 USA
Tel./Fax 520-546-4986
Member, Arizona Small Business Association - ASBA
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 14:03:32 -0800
From: <lharris <@t> samhealth.org>
Subject: [Histonet] RE: AMACR (P504S) (Lori Harris)
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID:
<5B3B26C4B71D5E469892D1860ABE10EA7F1E98 <@t> SHSEXVS01.int.samhealth.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Richard,
I found your response very interesting but could you explain to me what CMS &
MUE stand for? Thanks!
Lori A. Harris, HT (ASCP)
Histology Section Leader
GSRMC - Pathology
3600 NW Samaritan Drive
Corvallis, OR 97330
1-541-768-6078
lharris <@t> samhealth.org
-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
[mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu]On Behalf Of
histonet-request <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2006 10:02 AM
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Subject: Histonet Digest, Vol 27, Issue 29
Send Histonet mailing list submissions to
histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
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You can reach the person managing the list at
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When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
than "Re: Contents of Histonet digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. P-cadherin (Richard Cartun)
2. Helicobacter Pylori (Adesupod <@t> aol.com)
3. Re: AMACR (P504S) (Richard Cartun)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Sun, 19 Feb 2006 10:09:22 -0500
From: "Richard Cartun" <Rcartun <@t> harthosp.org>
Subject: [Histonet] P-cadherin
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <s3f843d5.007 <@t> hcnwgwds01.hh.chs>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Is anyone doing IHC for P-cadherin on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded
tissue? If so, where do you get your antibody? Thanks!
Richard
Richard W. Cartun, Ph.D.
Director, Immunopathology & Histology
Assistant Director, Anatomic Pathology
Hartford Hospital
80 Seymour Street
Hartford, CT 06102
(860) 545-1596
(860) 545-0174 Fax
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Sun, 19 Feb 2006 11:33:12 EST
From: Adesupod <@t> aol.com
Subject: [Histonet] Helicobacter Pylori
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <27.3d00fc2.3129f7c8 <@t> aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
Hi,
Pls I want you histonetters to tell me the best silver technique for
the demonstration of the Helicobacter Pylori.
You guys are the best.
Adesupo.
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Sun, 19 Feb 2006 12:05:22 -0500
From: "Richard Cartun" <Rcartun <@t> harthosp.org>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] AMACR (P504S)
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>,<Michele_Marggi <@t> ssmhc.com>
Message-ID: <s3f85f21.075 <@t> hcnwgwds01.hh.chs>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
I agree with Bob Richmond's comments. Our high molecular weight
cytokeratin (clone 34BetaE12) works beautifully for demonstrating an
absence of basal cells around malignant glands. We use P504S (from
DAKO) on rare cases. Their antibody (clone 13H4) is labeled "IVD". I
know that many labs are running multiple IP stains (HMW-CK, p63, P504S,
and others) on prostate biopsies. To me, this is completely unnecessary
for the majority of complicated cases where a diagnosis cannot be
established on H&E stains, and is one reason why CMS is proposing MUEs
to limit the number of IP stains that can be performed on a patient's
specimen.
Richard
Richard W. Cartun, Ph.D.
Director, Immunopathology & Histology
Assistant Director, Anatomic Pathology
Hartford Hospital
80 Seymour Street
Hartford, CT 06102
(860) 545-1596
(860) 545-0174 Fax
>>> <Michele_Marggi <@t> ssmhc.com> 02/14/06 11:24AM >>>
I am researching AMACR (P504s) and need some help. Who out there in
histo-land is using it? Is this a Research Use Only antibody? Is a
disclaimer in the report required? Any input would be
appreciated......
Thanks,
Michele Marggi
Surgical Pathology Supervisor
St. Marys Hospital Medical Center
707 S Mills Street
Madison WI 53715
Telephone: 608.258.6930
Fax: 608.258.6268
-----------------------------------------
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------------------------------
_______________________________________________
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End of Histonet Digest, Vol 27, Issue 29
****************************************
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Message: 7
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 16:28:38 CST
From: cforster <cforster <@t> umn.edu>
Subject: [Histonet] CD52 IHC
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <200602202228.k1KMScpN019762 <@t> saturn.software.umn.edu>
Content-Type: TEXT/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII
Hello Histonetters,
Is anyone doing teh CD52 on PPFE tissues? If so, would you share your
vendor and protocol? I have tried several different things and cannot seem
to get good staining.
Thanks in advance.
Colleen Forster HT(ASCP)QIHC
Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology
B173 PWB, MMC76
516 Delaware St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
612-626-1930
612-626-4660(f)
------------------------------
Message: 8
Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 18:53:22 EST
From: RCHIOVETTI <@t> aol.com
Subject: [Histonet] Re: Sucrose Sectioning
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <193.5190ec55.312bb072 <@t> aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
Here's a suggestion from Andi Grantham, University of Arizona Health Sciences
Center:
*********************************************************************
Sometimes before sectioning something that has been infiltrated with sucrose
I
pop it into OCT and allow it to sit there for a while to let the OCT try to
replace some of the sucrose. Then turn the specimen holder down real low to
cut. Sometimes this works, sometimes not.
Andi
*********************************************************************
Robert (Bob) Chiovetti, Ph.D.
The Microscope Works
Arizona's Microscopy Resource
132 North Elster Drive
Tucson, AZ 85710-3212 USA
Tel./Fax 520-546-4986
Member, Arizona Small Business Association - ASBA
------------------------------
Message: 9
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 07:38:38 -0500
From: "Michael LaFriniere" <mlafrini <@t> csmlab.com>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] voice recognition software
To: "Bonnie Whitaker" <bwhitaker <@t> brownpathology.com>,
<histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <s3fac3ab.019 <@t> GWGATE1.ahm.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
Bonnie,
I implemented Dragon with the Co Path system last month, so far we are
demonstrating excellent acceptance with the grossing area as well as the
Pathologists. It takes a little time to get all to buy into using the
system, however, the productivity cost decrease, ( primarily due to
reduction in transcription cost) far exceeds the "up front" time and
cost involved to implement.....
Good luck,
Michael
Michael R. LaFriniere
Executive Director
Cytology Services of Maryland (CSM)
301-206-2555 ext 27
301-206-2595 fax
michael.lafriniere <@t> csmlab.com
>>> "Bonnie Whitaker" <bwhitaker <@t> brownpathology.com> 2/20/2006 2:04 pm
>>>
Hi Everyone,
A friend asked me to inquire about voice recognition software. Is
anyone
out there using it? How well does it perform? Does anyone have any
experience with Dragon that they would be willing to share?
Thanks!
Bonnie Whitaker
Lab Manager
Brown & Associates Medical Laboratories
8076 El Rio
Houston, Texas 77054
713-741-6677
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
-----------------------------------------
------------------------------
Message: 10
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 07:28:28 -0600
From: "Peggy Brask" <pbrask <@t> comcast.net>
Subject: [Histonet] Do you love your job?
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <GCEMLEOJMJKLGHPLJGOKOEDPCIAA.pbrask <@t> comcast.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
I am a second semester student at Argosy University in the HT program. I
was wondering what the pros and cons are in the Histonet world. I have been
in the service industry in one form or another for the last 30 years. This
is a total diversion from my past life and I would like to know what you
love about your job and what you hate about your job. If anyone would like
to give me some input, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks, Peggy
------------------------------
Message: 11
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 08:50:04 -0500
From: "Carmen Contreras-Sesvold" <clcses <@t> gmail.com>
Subject: [Histonet] re: Oct-3/4 staining of seminomas
To: histonetters <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID:
<46a3be380602210550i73ee0edct9136ef747c7265d7 <@t> mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
What is your positive control?
Check your secondary to verify if it is working.
If everything else is working it might be your primary.
Call Santa Cruz and ask to speak to their tech service for that primary to
see if they can assist.
You can also ask them to provide another lot number that for the primary
(for free).
They have surperb tech support. I have had the best service from them.
Carmen
------------------------------
Message: 12
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 09:30:16 -0500
From: "Weems, Joyce" <JWEEMS <@t> sjha.org>
Subject: [Histonet] FW: ASCP Action Alert: High Priority Action
Alert!! MUE Proposal Could Undermine Quality Care, Devastate
Clinical
Laboratories
To: "Histonet" <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID:
<83AACDB0810528418AA106F9AE9B7F7E01305850 <@t> sjhaexc02.sjha.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
I hesitated before I send this, but we in the US are facing a pathology
crisis if we don't do something. For those not in the US I apologize, the
rest of us need to do what we can to help!
Thanks, j
Joyce Weems
Pathology Manager
Saint Joseph’s Hospital of Atlanta
404-851-7376
404-851-7831 - fax
<ftp://ascpftp.ascp.org/Grab/PDF/actionAlert.jpg>
High Priority Action Alert!! MUE Proposal Could
Undermine Quality Care, Devastate Clinical Laboratories!
America’s clinical laboratories are under assault by a federal initiative
and ASCP needs your help to defeat it!
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) recently proposed a massive CPT
coding edit, placing stringent caps on the units of service that can be
provided patients for pathology and laboratory services as well as other
medical services. The initiative could have profound consequences for
patient care and could also undermine the financial viability of numerous
clinical laboratories. One clinical laboratory estimates that the proposal
could reduce its Medicare Part A reimbursement by 35 percent and its Part B
reimbursement by 10 percent. This proposal might be one of the most harmful
policy initiatives faced by clinical laboratories in years.
What’s the Proposal?
CMS’s MUE (Medically Unbelievable Edits) proposal sets limits on the number
of units of services that can be billed per patient per day. The MUE
proposal sets limits on almost 1200 pathology and laboratory CPT Codes.
According to CMS, the coding edits proposed prevent billing for items that
are either (1) anatomically impossible (can’t remove more than one
appendix) or (2) medically unreasonable (more than one pacemaker).
Unfortunately, many of the coding edits proposed by CMS are inconsistent with
existing guidelines for diagnosing and treating patients. Under the proposal
CPT code 88305 may not be reimbursed at more than two units of service per
patient per day while 88342 would be capped at 4. MUEs being proposed would
allow contractors to “automatically deny the services without stopping the
claim for routine or complex review, even if documentation is attached.â€
What is ASCP Doing?
ASCP has written CMS Administrator Mark McClellan to protest the MUE
proposal, stating that the coding edits are flawed and threaten quality
patient care. In addition, ASCP is launching a multi-pronged effort to fight
this initiative. This initiative will reach out to ASCP members to seek
their technical input on these flaws and to generate grassroots opposition to
the CMS proposal. ASCP plans to compile this information to provide further
evidence that CMS’ MUE proposal is fundamentally flawed.
What Can I Do to Help?
To bolster the case that the MUE proposal is flawed, ASCP needs its membersâ€
™ technical input to help identify clinical scenarios where the MUE proposal
is inconsistent with the proper practice of laboratory medicine. Journal
articles or practice guidelines recommending a greater unit of service than
that allowed under the MUE proposal would be particularly helpful.
ASCP urges its members and others in the laboratory community to access
ASCP’s e-Advocacy Center to review a condensed version of the MUE proposal.
This condensed list focuses on the top 100 pathology and laboratory codes by
reimbursement. While it does not cover all 1200 CPT codes, the e-Advocacy
Center includes instructions for obtaining a copy of the entire MUE proposal.
Also on the e-Advocacy Center is a template for providing technical input to
ASCP. A copy of ASCP’s letter to CMS Administrator Mark McClellan is also
on the e-Advocacy Center.
The following are two examples of the type of input that helps bolster the
case that the MUE proposal is flawed.
For CPT code 88305 (Level IV – surgical pathology, gross and microscopic
examination), the MUE proposal limits reimbursement to only 2 procedures per
site per day. Guidelines developed by the American Gastroenterology
Association (AGA) and American Cancer Society (ACS) recommend that for
patients with ulcerative colitis, “two to four random biopsy specimens
should be obtained every 10 cm from the entire colon for a total of
approximately 40 biopsies per patient per colonoscopy, and additional samples
should be obtained at any suspicious area.†(7th Symposium on Inflammatory
Bowel Diseases and Salicylates).
For CPT code 88342 (immunocytochemistry (w/tissue immunoperoxidase), each
antibody), the MUE proposed limit is 4 units of service per patient per day.
Some tumors cannot be ascertained on histologic grounds, however, and require
the aid of immunohistochemical stains. In the case of anaplastic tumors, a
panel of seven immunohistochemical stains is needed (Gatter and Mason,
Seminars in Oncology, Vol. 9, No. 4, 1982). Moreover, in an article by Raab
(Arch Pathol Lab Med, Vol. 124, Aug. 2000), the author concluded that
“immunohistochemistry is extremely cost-effective,†with a more favorable
cost-benefit ratio than other medical procedures.
To provide input on the CMS MUE proposal, please use e-Advocacy Center
<http://capwiz.com/ascpath/home> to request the necessary documents from the
ASCP Washington Office. We’ll send you a copy of ASCP’s letter to CMS
along with a copy of the MUE proposal affecting the top 100 pathology and
laboratory service codes (by reimbursement). If you’d like a copy of the
MUE proposal affecting every pathology and laboratory code, please indicate
that you would like the expanded document as well.
ASCP thanks you for your efforts to help us better serve you and the
laboratory community!
Tell a friend:
Not everyone receives ASCP's Action Alerts, so please forward this message to
your peers and co-workers!
ASCP <http://www.ascp.org/images/email/ascplogo_simple_K.gif>
America's Health Depends on Its Laboratories
© 2003 American Society for Clinical Pathology
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------------------------------
Message: 13
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 07:00:53 -0800 (PST)
From: Cheryl <tkngflght <@t> yahoo.com>
Subject: [Histonet] A call to action for US AP/Histology
professionals
To: Histonet <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <20060221150053.71471.qmail <@t> web50907.mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Hello Folks--
There is another issue we should consider a call to paper the Senate with
letters stating our opinions....The AFIP faces closure due to realignment by
base closures (BRAC)--this includes the pathology center AND the school!!
We've lost so many good schools, and the AFIP is among the best. There is a
bill to relocate core services of the AFIP to another center and the link
below provides an easy way to write you your senator in support of this bill:
http://capwiz.com/ascpath/issues/alert/?alertid=8171231&type=CO
Please take a minute to show your support for our science on MUE billing
(Peggy's email of earlier today),AFIP closure, and two additional issues
threatening continued viability of lab science in this country. The form is
easy to fill out, and you can forward the link to several friends once you
submit your letter (it will give you another pop-up for sharing the letter
once you click to submit yours) to increase the impact of our unified voice.
This link will lead you to both letters and you can send it by email or snail
mail:
http://capwiz.com/ascpath/home/
Thank you for your continued interest and support tp maintain visibility
and viability of our craft. Together we DO make a difference.
Cheryl Kerry, HT(ASCP)
Full Staff Inc.
Staffing the AP Lab by helping one Tech at a time.
281.883.7704 c
281.852.9457 o
admin <@t> fullstaff.org
Sign up for the FREE monthly newsletter AP News--updates, tricks of the trade
and current issues for Anatomic Pathology Clinical Labs. Send a 'subscribe'
request to APNews <@t> fullstaff.org. Please include your name and specialty in
the body of the email.
------------------------------
Message: 14
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 09:49:39 -0600
From: "Kapoor, Sue" <Sue.Kapoor <@t> uhsi.org>
Subject: [Histonet] StarFrost Plus Slides for IHC
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <B29C7E4516D65144B5DA7687CDCCD9C50958A8 <@t> kmcmail.uhsi.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Hi everyone,
I'm considering changing from using SuperFrost Plus slides to StarFrost Plus
slides from Mercedes Medical for my immunos but I'd hate to start getting
unreliable staining...is anyone currently using StarFrost Plus slides for
immunos??
Thanks in advance,
Sue Kapoor, HT (ASCP)
Histology Coordinator
Kenosha Medical Center
Kenosha, WI
262-653-5570
------------------------------
Message: 15
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 12:00:26 -0400
From: "Tamara Franz-Odendaal" <tfranzod <@t> dal.ca>
Subject: [Histonet] immunohistochemistry fish tissue - help
To: <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <07a701c636ff$f4c6d6b0$6d20ad81 <@t> tam>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
I have two questions:
1) Does anyone have a good protocol for immunohistochemistry working with
fish tissue embedded in paraffin wax?
2) Any tricks with working with collagen antibodies (apart from hyaluronidase
treatment)?
I have been trying without success to do the above, I have tried an Alexa 488
secondary as well as a horse radish peroxidase secondary. Neither are working
and I am wondering if it is something peculiar to fish tissue. What are good
blocks to use to prevent autoimmunofluorescence, or what secondary do you
suggest. I am getting high backgrounds due to secondary. And also no signal
in the area of interest (cartilage) so the primaries are also not working
well. I am starting to wonder if the antibodies are at fault but before I
order more wanted to know if anyone has any good working protocols.
I am working on larval tissue not embryonic. zebrafish.
Or do you suggest whole mount immunohistochemistry?
Thanks
Tamara
Dr. Tamara Franz-Odendaal
Dalhousie University
Halifax, Canada
------------------------------
Message: 16
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 08:21:10 -0800 (PST)
From: Rene J Buesa <rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] Do you love your job?
To: pbrask <@t> comcast.net, histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <20060221162110.98958.qmail <@t> web61224.mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Hi Peggy:
What others love or hate about a job has no individual relevance at all.
You will have to experience that feeling by yourself.
If you have dexterity, if you like to cook, if you like to knit, if you
like to innovate and experiment, if you have a good smell sense, if you enjoy
colours, if you look at what you manually have done and feel proud about it,
if you understand the importance of doing things to help others, if you don't
mind working more than required just to make sure that what you are doing is
finished correctly, if you like at least some of the aforesaid, you will like
histotechnology, if not, you are in a wrong switch from your previous
activities.
At least, those are some of the things I love; there are more, and what I
don't like mostly are things related with human nature, and those you will
find and hate in any profession.
Hope this will give you an idea!
rené J.
Peggy Brask <pbrask <@t> comcast.net> wrote:
I am a second semester student at Argosy University in the HT program. I
was wondering what the pros and cons are in the Histonet world. I have been
in the service industry in one form or another for the last 30 years. This
is a total diversion from my past life and I would like to know what you
love about your job and what you hate about your job. If anyone would like
to give me some input, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks, Peggy
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
---------------------------------
Relax. Yahoo! Mail virus scanning helps detect nasty viruses!
------------------------------
Message: 17
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 11:04:41 -0600
From: dgaupp <@t> tulane.edu
Subject: [Histonet] wright-giemsa stain on tissue
To: Histonet <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <1140541481.43fb4829095a0 <@t> webmail.tulane.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Histonet:
Has anyone ever heard of staining wright-giemsa stain on paraffin embedded
tissue(rat bone)? I've stained in the past blood smears and bone marrow
smears.
Just wondering if anyone out there in histoland has ever done so. I checked
out
histonet archives and did not find any results of paraffin processed tissue
stained with wright-giemsa.
Thanks,
Dina
------------------------------
Message: 18
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 09:16:46 -0800 (PST)
From: Rene J Buesa <rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] wright-giemsa stain on tissue
To: dgaupp <@t> tulane.edu, Histonet <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
Message-ID: <20060221171646.97141.qmail <@t> web61214.mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Hi Dina:
I am attaching a paper I published on the subject to your e-mail address.
I hope this will help you.
René J.
dgaupp <@t> tulane.edu wrote:
Histonet:
Has anyone ever heard of staining wright-giemsa stain on paraffin embedded
tissue(rat bone)? I've stained in the past blood smears and bone marrow
smears.
Just wondering if anyone out there in histoland has ever done so. I checked
out
histonet archives and did not find any results of paraffin processed tissue
stained with wright-giemsa.
Thanks,
Dina
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
---------------------------------
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------------------------------
Message: 19
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2006 11:53:23 -0600
From: "Jackie M O'Connor" <Jackie.O'Connor <@t> abbott.com>
Subject: Re: [Histonet] Do you love your job?
To: Rene J Buesa <rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com>
Cc: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Message-ID: <OFFD06C1CB.7339B1AA-ON8625711C.00611098 <@t> abbott.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Perhaps Peggy is looking for a different spin on this type of work - many
people aren't suited for histology. If you can't stand the sight or smell
of blood - you're not suited. I have a sister who is an ER nurse - she
doesn't mind debriding head wounds on people, yet to see a hysterectomy
sample on my dissecting board brought her to dry heaves - - the only thing
that ever really grossed me out was when I found 1/2 a shoe in my lab
refer over a long weekend - of course it also contained 1/2 a foot. My
eldest daughter has a BS in biology, but could never work with animal
tissues - it makes her cry. In my opinion, the worst part about
histology is the potential for chemical and biological exposure - yeah,
you can take safeguards, but the risk is still there - let's face it, the
odds of the general public being exposed to formaldehyde went away when
they quit putting it in Mr. Bubble bubble bath - not to mention silver
nitrate, chloroform, osmium tetroxide - the list goes on. Other things
that have bothered me over the last 35 years are fetal samples - but I'm a
Mom. Sometimes you have to not think about the patient behind the sample
- it can get too depressing - on the other hand, I've learned more about
anatomy and the process of disease that I would have ever learned anywhere
else. I think the key is asking a lot of questions if you have a
pathologist who is willing to explain - I've been fortunate working with
many pathologists who were terrific teachers. I like my job - I'm proud
of what I do. I'm at the point in my life where I'm helping to find a
cure for cancer instead of just seeing cancer specimens - and that's way
cool. It's a great and honorable profession, and someone has to do it.
I'm glad to be a part of it.
Jackie O'
Rene J Buesa <rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com>
Sent by: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
02/21/2006 10:21 AM
To: pbrask <@t> comcast.net, histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
cc: (bcc: Jackie M O'Connor/LAKE/GPRD/ABBOTT)
Subject: Re: [Histonet] Do you love your job?
Hi Peggy:
What others love or hate about a job has no individual relevance at all.
You will have to experience that feeling by yourself.
If you have dexterity, if you like to cook, if you like to knit, if you
like to innovate and experiment, if you have a good smell sense, if you
enjoy colours, if you look at what you manually have done and feel proud
about it, if you understand the importance of doing things to help others,
if you don't mind working more than required just to make sure that what
you are doing is finished correctly, if you like at least some of the
aforesaid, you will like histotechnology, if not, you are in a wrong
switch from your previous activities.
At least, those are some of the things I love; there are more, and what
I don't like mostly are things related with human nature, and those you
will find and hate in any profession.
Hope this will give you an idea!
rené J.
Peggy Brask <pbrask <@t> comcast.net> wrote:
I am a second semester student at Argosy University in the HT program. I
was wondering what the pros and cons are in the Histonet world. I have
been
in the service industry in one form or another for the last 30 years. This
is a total diversion from my past life and I would like to know what you
love about your job and what you hate about your job. If anyone would like
to give me some input, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks, Peggy
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
---------------------------------
Relax. Yahoo! Mail virus scanning helps detect nasty viruses!
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
------------------------------
_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
End of Histonet Digest, Vol 27, Issue 31
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