Mixed Deck — All HT Topics Flashcards

What documentation practice is considered essential in Quality Control & Assurance within the Histotechnician field?

Answer: Recording actions, observations, and outcomes in real-time or as close to the event as possible

Real-time or near-real-time documentation in Quality Control & Assurance ensures accuracy, provides a contemporaneous record, and is considered the gold standard for professional accountability and legal defensibility.

When receiving a lymph node specimen for lymphoma workup, which handling protocol is MOST important?

Answer: Submit fresh tissue for flow cytometry before fixation

Lymphoma workup requires fresh tissue for flow cytometry, cytogenetics, and molecular studies, so a portion must be submitted fresh before any fixation.

How does risk management apply to daily practice in Microtomy & Sectioning Techniques for Histotechnician professionals?

Answer: Through proactive identification of potential hazards and implementation of preventive measures

Effective risk management in Microtomy & Sectioning Techniques requires proactive hazard identification and preventive measures, not just reactive responses. This approach reduces incidents, improves outcomes, and protects both professionals and clients.

A specimen is received in Hollande's fixative. This fixative is MOST similar in composition to:

Answer: Bouin's fixative

Hollande's fixative is a modified Bouin's solution that substitutes copper acetate for some picric acid, offering similar preservation properties.

What is the purpose of clearing in tissue processing?

Answer: To make tissue transparent.

Clearing is the step after dehydration where alcohol is replaced by a clearing agent, such as xylene. The primary purpose of clearing is to make the tissue transparent, which is necessary because the refractive index of the clearing agent is similar to that of the embedding medium. This transparency allows for better visualization during embedding and ensures complete infiltration of the wax into the tissue.

What is the primary purpose of running a negative control in immunohistochemistry?

Answer: Demonstrate that non-specific background staining is absent

A negative control (using a non-immune serum or omitting the primary antibody) confirms that any staining seen in test sections is specific, not background artifact.

What is the PRIMARY reason tissues should NOT be allowed to freeze during transport in cold conditions?

Answer: Ice crystal formation disrupts cellular architecture causing freezing artifact

Ice crystals that form during freezing expand and physically rupture cell membranes and disrupt tissue architecture, creating freezing artifact in histologic sections.

Which tissue component is LEAST well-preserved by standard 10% neutral buffered formalin?

Answer: Lipids

Formalin does not fix lipids, which are extracted during alcohol dehydration steps in processing, leaving empty spaces or requiring special fixatives like osmium tetroxide.

Which embedding medium is most commonly used to support tissue for frozen sections in a cryostat?

Answer: Optimal Cutting Temperature (OCT) compound

OCT (Optimal Cutting Temperature) compound is the standard embedding medium for cryostat sectioning because it supports the tissue block without interfering with most staining procedures.

A newly prepared Alcian Blue pH 2.5 solution fails to stain acid mucins in the positive control. After checking pH, what is the next most likely variable to investigate?

Answer: Acetic acid concentration used to adjust pH

Alcian Blue pH 2.5 requires precise pH adjustment using acetic acid; incorrect concentration alters ionization of the dye and prevents mucin binding.

What is the primary purpose of immunohistochemistry (IHC) in histology?

Answer: To detect specific proteins using antibodies.

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is a powerful technique that utilizes the highly specific binding of antibodies to antigens (proteins) within tissue sections. This allows for the precise localization and identification of specific proteins, such as tumor markers, infectious agents, or cellular differentiation markers. IHC is crucial for accurate diagnosis, prognosis, and guiding treatment selection in pathology.

In Quality Control & Assurance, what is the FIRST step a HT professional should take when encountering a new case or situation?

Answer: Conduct a comprehensive assessment and gather all relevant information

In Quality Control & Assurance, a thorough initial assessment ensures all relevant factors are identified before deciding on an appropriate course of action. This systematic approach is fundamental to Histotechnician practice.

A laboratory receives a proficiency testing (PT) failure for H&E staining. What is the REQUIRED first step?

Answer: Perform root cause analysis and document corrective actions

CLIA requires that laboratories investigate PT failures through root cause analysis and implement documented corrective actions within a specified timeframe.

Which embedding medium is most commonly used for routine paraffin processing in histology?

Answer: Paraplast or similar paraffin wax blend

Paraplast and similar paraffin blends are the standard embedding media for routine formalin-fixed tissue in most histology laboratories.

Which of the following is a MAJOR safety concern when working with Zenker's fixative?

Answer: Mercury toxicity and disposal requirements

Zenker's fixative contains mercuric chloride, a heavy metal that is highly toxic and requires special disposal procedures per environmental regulations.

Why is tissue dehydration important in processing?

Answer: It allows tissue to be infiltrated with embedding media.

Tissue dehydration is a crucial step where water is progressively removed from the tissue using ascending concentrations of alcohol. This is necessary because most embedding media, such as paraffin wax, are not miscible with water. By removing water, the tissue becomes receptive to subsequent clearing agents and ultimately allows for proper infiltration with the embedding medium, which is vital for sectioning.

What is the primary advantage of frozen sections over routine paraffin-embedded sections?

Answer: Rapid preparation time enabling intraoperative diagnosis

The primary advantage of frozen sections is rapid turnaround (15–20 minutes), allowing surgeons to receive an intraoperative diagnosis without significantly prolonging the procedure.

A laboratory adopts a new automated stainer. Which initial QC step must be completed before using it for patient specimens?

Answer: Perform validation studies comparing results to the manual reference method

Before patient use, new instrumentation must be validated by demonstrating performance equivalence or superiority to the established reference method.

A laboratory logs that staining results failed QC and the run was repeated. Which document should record the root cause and action taken?

Answer: Corrective action log

The corrective action log documents QC failures, their investigated root causes, and the steps taken to resolve and prevent recurrence.

What is the most common method of tissue staining in histology?

Answer: Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stain

Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) is the most widely used and fundamental staining method in histology for routine diagnostic purposes. It provides excellent morphological detail, with hematoxylin staining nuclei blue/purple and eosin staining cytoplasm and extracellular matrix pink/red. This combination allows pathologists to easily identify different tissue types and cellular abnormalities, making it indispensable.