The concept of pathomorphology sounds scary, especially since the doctor dealing with this field – a pathologist – is not one of the specialists we know from personal visits. The pathomorphologist is approached by other specialist doctors who undergo treatment with a request to perform a pathomorphological examination of the collected biological material. Often, after various types of tests, we are exposed to long, sometimes several weeks, waiting for the result of pathomorphology – a result that is a kind of judgment on which doctors depend prognosis and further treatment, and which we ourselves are often unable to understand, because it usually consists of Latin names and incomprehensible markings. What is pathomorphology, what does a pathologist do and what can we expect from the results of pathomorphological tests?
Pathomorphology is a science that is a branch of medicine. It examines tissues and organs – deals with the analysis of morphological changes within them (in structure). Changes are recognized and appropriately classified by tissue researchers pathologists. It is an interdisciplinary field of science, i.e. it combines scientific elements from various other fields. Its basis is pathological anatomy. In itself, it is an auxiliary tool for many other specialized fields of science – it supports medical specialists in all other fields. Pathomorphological research On the one hand, cells, tissues and organs are used in the diagnosis and prognosis of the treatment of diseases, and on the other hand, they can be used to test the tissues of the deceased and help determine the cause of death. Let’s take a look at suitability pathomorphology in the diagnosis of diseases.
Pathomorphological examination in the diagnosis of diseases – what it looks like and what it is useful for
Today’s medicine is a constantly and dynamically developing science, introducing new research and treatment methods. Formerly work pathomorphologist it was limited to the appropriate preparation of a tissue or organ fragment – e.g. by appropriate staining – and examining the prepared preparation under various magnification. It included macroscopic and microscopic evaluation. Today patomorfolog he has a number of research methods to help, which he uses to detect pathological changes in tissues or organs. Pathomorphology is a method based on and using other research and research methods such as:
- biopsy. It can be coarse or fine needle. It consists in taking cells from an organ with a needle. The condition of the cells is then assessed by a pathologist. Most often it is used to detect or rule out neoplastic and precancerous conditions;
- advanced microscopy with digital image analysis – a pathologist uses very advanced technologies that allow for an unambiguous assessment of the condition of cells;
- cytochemistry and histochemistry – thanks to many methods, e.g. tests for the presence of certain substances, it is possible to precisely assess the condition of cells and tissues;
- molecular biology – a pathologist can extract parts of them from cells, e.g. specific proteins, and subject them to molecular tests.
Score pathomorphological examination usually goes directly to a specialist in a given field, and if we pick it up ourselves, consult its meaning with the attending physician and do not try to decipher the scientific records on your own. Based on the result, the doctor will select the best-suited method of treatment and tell us what the prognosis and prognosis are. Pathomorphology allows for the diagnosis of many diseases. Below we present the most important of them:
- diagnostics of precancerous and neoplastic conditions, assessment of tumors, cysts,
- diagnosis of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases,
- diagnostics of the causes of failure of many organs, e.g. liver, kidneys,
- diagnostics of female diseases (e.g. endometriosis, uterine fibroids),
- diagnosis of an ectopic pregnancy,
- diagnostics of inflammatory and degenerative changes in joints and bones,
- differentiation of bone marrow diseases,
- diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases,
- assessment of the condition of the heart muscle and its diseases,
- recognizing the causes of shock and circulatory disorders,
- examination of various types of fluids taken from body cavities (peritoneum, pleura, pericardial sac),
- diagnostics of the causes of hypothyroidism or hyperfunction of the endocrine glands (e.g. thyroid, pancreas, adrenal glands).
Finally, it is worth mentioning – pathomorphology it is used in medicine and in the standard autopsy, but it does not deal with police matters – in this case the examinations are carried out by more specialized forensic doctors.