[Histochemical and quantitative methods in the biopsy examination of skeletal muscles]

A complex bioptic examination of skeletal muscles as carried out in 280 excised samples has been subjected to a critical analysis. The examination suggested consists of histological and histochemical processing of native cryostat sections. Besides conventional staining methods the techniques recommended include the reaction for detection of myosin ATP-ase with and without acid preincubation, and reactions for NADH tertazolium reductase, acid phosphatase, nonspecific esterase, glycogen and lipids. Sections stained for ATP-ase are suitable for quantitative examinations such as assessing the diameters of muscle fibres.