Comparison of Prostatic Tissue Processed by Microwave and Conventional Technique Using Morphometry

Rapid processing of histopathological specimens and decreased turnaround time is important to fulfill the needs of clinicians treating sick patients, so the present study was conducted to compare the time taken and quality of sections in processing of prostatic tissue by rapid microwave and conventional techniques using morphometry.

Four to five mm thick paired prostate tissue pieces of fifty cases of prostatectomy specimens were taken. One tissue piece of the pair was processed routinely overnight by conventional tissue processing and the other by microwave processing. Time taken for processing by both conventional technique and microwave technique was noted and compared. Then, both were stained with conventional method of hematoxylin and eosin staining and examined for histological typing and grading. Morphometric study was done on slides of prostatic tissue processed by both conventional and microwave technique.

The prostatectomy specimens included both benign (86%) and malignant (14%) prostatic lesions in the age range of 46-85 years. The time taken for steps of dehydration, clearing and impregnation in microwave technique was significantly less as compared to histoprocessing done by conventional technique. Morphology, staining patterns of prostatic tissue processed within minutes by microwave technique, whether benign or malignant, were comparable to those sections which were processed in days using standard technique.

Domestic microwave oven can be used for histoprocessing to accelerate the processing with preservation of morphology and is cheaper than commercially available microwave ovens and processing time was considerably reduced from days to minutes.