Texas Equine Veterinary Association

www.texasequineva.com • 19 The relationship between a veterinarian and a veterinary medical diagnostic laboratory should be viewed as a partnership where each does their part to try and meet the expectations of both parties. The goal of the diagnostic lab is to provide useable information back to the submitting veterinarian to assist them with their case management and, hopefully, the best possible outcome for the patient. In this article there are some "helpful hints" to assist the busy practitioner when collecting and submitting diagnostic samples. General Information It is important to pay close attention to all aspects of sample collection, handling, storage, and shipping to help ensure accurate meaningful lab results. Guidelines for packaging specimens can be found on most diagnostic lab websites, or you can call the lab and they will be happy to assist. It is strongly recommended that samples be shipped overnight delivery to help maintain the integrity and quality of the sample. This is the CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS: Catherine Barr, PhD, ABT; Erin Edwards, DVM, PhD, DACVP; Pam Ferro, PhD; Terry Hensley, MS, DVM; Melanie Landis, DVM; Sonia Lingsweiler, MS; Travis Mays, PhD; Julie Piccione, DVM, PhD, DACVP; Narayan Paul, DVM, PhD; Carlos Rodriguez, BS. Diagnostic Laboratory Submissions— Helpful Hints TVMDL Veterinarians and Scientists one area where neither the veterinarian nor the laboratory has any control so the shorter the time that the sample is in transit the better. Completing the submission form accurately and completely, regardless of the test being requested, is important so there is a good snapshot of the case and the requested tests. A brief but well written history is very helpful to help providing the best service possible to you the submitting veterinarian. Q: How do I get the most out of histopathology and necropsy/ gross pathology requests? Biopsy When biopsy specimens are submitted, the clinical history should include the location from where the biopsy was collected along with the duration, distribution, and appearance of any lesions. Submitted specimens should be of adequate size in order to increase the chances of receiving a diagnosis. The larger the better, though clinical location and other factors may limit sample collection. For incisional biopsies, multiple representative regions should be sampled including those from the center of the lesion(s) and those from the outer margin of the lesion(s), at the junction of normal and abnormal. Tissue specimens should be handled gently and care should be taken to avoid crushing, as this can impact histologic evaluation. Biopsy specimens should be promptly placed in fresh 10% neutral buffered formalin. A 10:1 ratio of formalin to tissue is traditionally recommended to ensure total fixation; however, a 5:1 ratio is typically sufficient. If collecting samples from multiple body sites, the specimens should be clearly labeled, either with suture tags, with a unique description on the submission form (i.e., larger specimen vs. smaller specimen), or they should be placed in separate, labeled formalin jars. Necropsy With horse and other large animal species, it is common for veterinarians to perform a field necropsy and submit

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