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Updated: Jun 15, 2026
Histological Quantification of Chronic Myocardial Infarct in Rats
Published on: December 11, 2016
Comparison of histopathological and triphenyl tetrazolium chloride test in diagnosing myocardial infarction: An
Varun Krishna B1, Chandni Gupta2, Vikram Palimar3
1Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Ganapathichettikulam Village No. 20, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Kalapet, Puducherry, 605014, India.
Insights
Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) staining accurately detects early myocardial infarction during autopsy. This histochemical method aids forensic pathologists in diagnosing heart attacks when gross changes are not yet visible.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Pathology
- Cardiovascular Pathology
- Histochemistry
Background:
- Sudden cardiac deaths are rising, with coronary artery disease as the primary cause.
- Early detection of myocardial infarction (MI) during autopsy is difficult due to delayed gross changes.
- Standard autopsy methods struggle to identify MI within the first 24-48 hours of ischemic injury.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) staining with histopathology for detecting early myocardial infarction.
- To evaluate the reliability of TTC staining in post-mortem diagnosis of MI.
Main Methods:
- Sixty hearts from suspected cardiac sudden deaths were analyzed.
- Serial transverse sections were stained using both TTC and standard histopathology.
- TTC staining identifies viable myocardial tissue (unstained) versus infarcted tissue (stained).
Main Results:
- Histopathology diagnosed MI in 34 hearts and non-MI in 26.
- TTC staining indicated MI in 40 hearts (unstained) and non-MI in 20 (stained).
- TTC staining demonstrated an 88.33% accuracy in diagnosing myocardial infarction.
Conclusions:
- Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) staining is a reliable method for diagnosing early myocardial infarction.
- This histochemical technique offers a valuable tool for forensic pathologists in post-mortem examinations.
- TTC staining aids in identifying myocardial damage before visible gross changes appear.
Background:
Sudden and unexpected deaths are increasing drastically. The main cause of sudden death is cardiovascular disease, out of which coronary artery disease predominates forming 80% of the cases. Most of the time, detecting early changes in myocardial infarction during the autopsy is challenging since gross infarct changes do not appear until after 24 to 48 hours of myocardial ischemia injury. So, the aim of this study was to compare two test to detect early changes of Myocardial Infarction one by using Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) staining of the myocardial tissue, during autopsy and other by histopathological examination.
Methods:
The sample size of 60 hearts taken from all the sudden deaths cases brought to Mortuary with suspected cause of death due to cardiac origin. The heart was obtained from the deceased by standard post-mortem technique. Serial full-thickness transverse sections of the heart were taken at 2 cm intervals from the apex to the atrioventricular groove. All the serial slices of heart are taken for histochemical staining and TTC staining.
Results:
In histopathological examination 34 hearts were diagnosed with myocardial infarction and 26 hearts reported non myocardial infarction. With TTC 40 hearts remained unstained suggestive of myocardial infarction and 20 hearts were stained suggestive of non-infarcted hearts. TTC staining in our study shows an accuracy of 88.33%.
Conclusion:
The result of this study shows that the Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride test, a histochemical staining technique of heart, is reliable approach for forensic pathologists to diagnose early myocardial infarction during the post-mortem examination.
