Gch. Yang et Ii. Alvarez, ULTRAFAST PAPANICOLAOU STAIN - AN ALTERNATIVE PREPARATION FOR FINE-NEEDLE ASPIRATION CYTOLOGY, Acta cytologica, 39(1), 1995, pp. 55-60
The objective of this study was to develop a Papanicolaou stain Its fa
st as Diff-Quik yet with cytomorphology as exquisite as that processed
by ThinPrep for the optimal evaluation of fine needle aspirates. Sati
sfactory results were obtained after three modifications were made: (1
) rehydration of air-dried smears with normal saline, (2) use of a 4%
formaldehyde/65% ethanol fixative, (3) and use of Richard-Allan Hemato
xylin 2 and Cyto-stain. The first modification restored the transparen
cy of the cells and hemolysed red blood cells, the second modification
reduced the time needed for proper fixation and staining from minutes
to seconds, and the third modification simplified the procedure. This
90-second protocol yields a transparent, polychromatic stain with cri
sp nuclear and cytoplasmic features. The cytomorphology processed by t
his protocol is at least equal to, if not better than, the quality of
specimens prepared by ThinPrep and superior to those processed by the
standard Papanicolaou procedure.