[Whole organ plastination in otorhinolaryngology]

Total organ sections have proven to be useful in the evaluation of the clinical growth behavior of malignant tumors. However, histologic techniques using tissues embedded in celloidin or paraffin are difficult to produce and require extensive amounts of time. Total organ plastination is a method superior to the aforementioned techniques. The number of artefacts is also greatly reduced by avoiding the need for decalcification. After removal of fat and dehydration, specimens can be placed in epoxy resin. Following evacuation and hardening of specimens, parallel sections can be separated with a diamond wire saw for precision slicing, with section thicknesses ranging from several centimeters to as small as 40 microns. The loss in material caused by slicing is as little as 0.3 mm per section. A further benefit of this method is the relatively large amount of time saved. The entire procedure yielding complete plastinated specimens requires a time period of approximately 40 days. The plastinated specimens are transparent, odorless and fixed and are ideal for instructional and research purposes. Deplastination for the purpose of further diagnositic study is also achievable with a minimum of technical effort.