05 Pathologic Examination B. The Microscopic Examination
Description
This article is from the The Biopsy Report: A Patient's Guide, by Ed Uthman uthman@neosoft.com with numerous contributions by others.
05 Pathologic Examination B. The Microscopic Examination
The microscopic description, or the "micro" is a narrative
description of the findings gained from examination of the glass
slides under the microscope. The micro is considered somewhat
"optional" in a written report. In such a case, the diagnosis (see
below) is considered to speak for itself. Here is a the microscopic
description on the report of the colon biopsy given above:
Specimen A: The sections show a polypoid structure
consisting of a central fibrovascular core, surrounded
by a mantle of mucosa showing an adenomatous
architecture with a predominantly tubular pattern. The
tubules are lined by tall columnar epithelium showing
nuclear pseudostratification, hyperchromasia, increased
mitotic activity, and loss of cytoplasmic mucin. There
in no evidence of stromal invasion.
It can be readily seen that the language of microscopy is much more
arcane than that used for gross descriptions. It is way beyond the
scope of this monograph to cover the nuances of descriptive
microscopic pathology. In general, microscopic descriptions are
communications between pathologists for referral and quality
assurances purposes.
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