Glass slides form the conventional medium
for cytology.
Smear preparation
Smears can be made
- by direct impression on the lesions
- from swabs applied to the lesion and then rolled on the
slide
- from a drop of pus or other liquid exudate smeared over
the slide as for blood smear preparation
- from fine needle aspirates or material collected from the
lesion with e.g. the tip of a needle or scalpel blade, or
the corner of a glass slide
Fixation
DiffQuik has a fixative
as the first solution. When other stains are used, fixation is
required to stabilise the cells and hold them on the slide. This
can be done
- by heating - suitable for examination of micro-organisms
with Gram or Ziehl
Neelson stains. Pass the slide over a Bunsen burner flame
2 or 3 times
- with alcohol. This is good for cytology. Methanol is best.
Flood the slide and then drain off after a minute
Staining will normally be done quickly in the clinic
with a haematological stain such as DiffQuik
after allowing the specimen to air dry.
