[Histonet] Re: histology ink washing off

[Mark Ray]

Most institutions have a discount contract with  a large office supply 
company.  Borrow a catalog from the office staff.  That's usually the 
cheapest deal on india ink and you don't have to go to an outside vendor 
that your purchasing department never heard of.

Robert Richmond wrote:
> Inks - both ordinary india ink and colored inks - used for marking
> histology specimens will usually stay on quite satisfactorily if you
> make sure to blot the specimen dry before inking. I never anything to
> fix the ink to the specimen. 2% to 5% acetic acid is simple to use if
> you or your pathologist want it. Don't use acetone (flammable) or
> Bouin's fixative (toxic and messy).
>
> Ink doesn't adhere well to cauterized tissue surfaces. It adheres
> reasonably well to cauterized breast tissue, not at all to the
> cauterized surfaces of LEEP specimens of the cervix (where the
> cauterized surfaces themselves are an adequate guide to the margins
> for the microscopist).
>
> Ordinary india ink - most of what the pathologist uses - is easily
> bought at artist's or craft supply stores, much cheaper and in  more
> convenient containers than you get from medical supply houses. When
> multiple colors are needed, some people use tattoo inks (cheap, and
> available in numerous colors), but most use inks made specially for
> this purpose. I prefer the Davidson marking inks (now available from
> ordinary lab vendors like whatever Thermo and Cardinal are called this
> week. I have no commercial connection to this product.)
>
> Inks dry out and go bad if the containers aren't promptly capped after
> use. Pathologists tend to forget this, and the histotech who assists
> the pathologist should make sure that the caps are replaced.
>
> The little dye capsules are an abomination - they squirt and flood the
> specimen and your clothes with unwanted dye.
>
> Bob Richmond
> Samurai Pathologist
> Knoxville TN
>
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