Application of three techniques in preparation of cell blocks of pleural effusion
LI Jun
LIU Shifang
QU Xiaoyan
GUO Yu
Abstract：Objective To investigate the application effects of three techniques in pleural effusion cell block preparation and to analyze their impacts on slide quality.Methods A total of 106 pleural effusion specimens collected from February 2022 to December 2024 at the Department of Pathology,Yibin First People's Hospital were randomly divided into three groups:using a random number table method filter paper transfer method(n=35),agar encapsulation method(n=35),and ethanol-pipette method(n=36).Hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining was first performed on paraffin-embedded sections for morphological observation.Subsequent immunohistochemical(IHC)staining was selectively conducted based on diagnostic requirements.The HE/IHC staining quality,slide preparation outcomes,and operational efficiency were compared across methods.Results The cell yield obtained by the filter paper transfer method was relatively small,with good cell morphology and local cell density.The cells obtained by the agar encapsulation method had good aggregation and integrity,but the cell quantity had a great impact on the section quality.The ethanol-pipette method had a good cell fixation effect,was not limited by the cell quantity,and the cells in the section were relatively dispersed.The excellent and good rate of HE slide preparation by the ethanol-test-tube method was significantly higher than that of the filter-paper transfer method and the agar-encapsulation method(P<0.05).The excellent rate of IHC preparations using the ethanol-pipette method was 77.78%(28/36),which was significantly higher than the 8.57%(3/35)for the filter paper transfer method and 34.29%(12/35)for the agar encapsulation method(P<0.05).Conclusion While the filter paper method offers simplicity(average operation time 25±3.5 min)and the agar method ensures clustering capability,the ethanol-pipette method combines operational efficiency(time required 18±2.1 min),high diagnostic accuracy(93.5%concordance rate),and excellent section quality,making it the most clinically practical technique for standardized cell block preparation.
Keywords：pleural effusion cellscell blockspreparation methodsHE stainingimmunohistochemistry
Publication Date：2026-01-28
Online Publishing Date：2026-03-31(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：6( 105-110 )