Results are generally available 2 to 5 days after receipt of the specimen. Urgent are available the same day.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

See Hospital Policy "Surgical Specimens for Pathology and Outside Review (Opens in a new window)" for specimens requiring examination.

For Surgical Pathology consultations, call 503-494-6775 direct.

Outside Blocks, Slide Prep & Review, Outside Slide Review, Tissue Examination, Frozen Section, OR Consultation

Results are generally available in 1 to 2 business days for light microscopy and immunofluorescence.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. 

Evaluation of native kidney biopsies for medical renal disease requires renal cortex submitted in formalin for light microscopy, in Michels or Zeus transport medium for electron microscopy, and in glutaraldehyde for electron microscopy. For allograft kidney biopsies, the majority of the tissue should be submitted in formalin for light microscopy with a small portion in Michels or Zeus for immunofluorescence (C4d). If there is proteinnuria or concern for allograft glomerulonephritis, the specimen should be submitted as per native biopsy. The links below will direct you to instructions for dividing the biopsy, as well as contact information for the laboratory and renal pathologists.

Dividing biopsy specimens. (Opens in a new window) 

Kidney Biopsy

Results are generally available 2 to 5 days after receipt of the specimen.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. 

Review of microscopic slides originating from other institutions requires, in addition to the usual completed requisition form, a copy of the outside surgical pathology report. This provides clear documentation that the slides correspond to a given patient and gives needed information about the gross appearance and handling of the tissue. Slides submitted without the outside report may be held until the report is received.

Whenever treatment of a patient at OHSU is based on the histopathological findings reported from an outside institution, the pathology must be reviewed by the OHSU pathologists prior to treatment. See Hospital policy "Surgical Specimens for Pathology and Outside Review."

Call 503 494-6776 for information.

30 minutes

OR Consultation are available Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm by calling 503 494-6791. Or by calling the OHSU paging operator at 503 494-8211 and requesting the Pathology Resident on-call.

Also see: Frozen Section (Opens in a new window)

Intraoperative Consultation

Results are generally available 14 days after receipt of the specimen.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

GENERAL: Correct interpretation of muscle and nerve biopsies is strongly dependent on the clinical setting. It is therefore imperative that pertinent clinical information, including medications and the name of the physician responsible for the patient, accompanies the specimen. This may be either faxed (503-494-2025) the day the specimen is shipped, or preferably e-mailed to NPohsu.edu. (Opens in a new window) E-mail information may be sent in advance as long as the approximate date of surgery is indicated. Specimens without history will be evaluated by H&E stain only.

MUSCLE: If a specific muscle is not dictated by the clinical presentation, the following muscles are preferred.

In order of preference: Quadriceps, Biceps, Deltoid

• Adequate size: 1 cm x 0.5 cm x 0.5 cm
• Avoid end stage muscle.
• Take biopsy away from a tendon insertion site.
• No infiltration with local anesthetic.
• Do not freeze specimen.
• No clamps or tying to tongue blade.

PREPARATION FOR SHIPMENT:

Wrap specimen loosely in saline-moistened gauze or Telfa. Do not immerse in saline.
Place wrapped specimen into dry container e.g., specimen cup, and seal.
Surround container with wet ice. Do not ship on dry ice.
Pack in a Styrofoam container.
Ship via courier, cab, FedEx or air.

SHIPPING LABEL INFORMATION:

• Cab or courier:
  • Hatfield LaboratoryServices
    Room HRC9D20
    Hatfield ResearchCenter
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Mailcode HRC9
    Portland, OR 97239
    Notify Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822, upon arrival
• FedEx:
  • SURGICALPATHOLOGY L471
    OHSU
    Matthew Wood, MD, PhD
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road
    Portland, OR 97239
    Attn: Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822
• Air:
  • Matthew Wood, MD, PhD
    Surgical Pathology, L471
    OHSU
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park RD
    Portland, OR 97239
    Attn: Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822

ADDENDUM:

Re: Arrival of specimens at OHSU- alternative procedure for muscles.

If the specimen cannot be delivered to OHSU by 4:00 pm, the following procedure can be followed:

The specimen should be retained at the sending lab until the following OHSU workday. Specimens should be kept on saline-moistened (not soaked) gauze, in a dry closed container, in the refrigerator. If the following day is a Saturday or a holiday, then the specimen should be held (even over the weekend if necessary), until the next available OHSU workday. The next morning, OHSU should be contacted prior to shipping, and then the specimen shipped in the morning on moistened gauze, in a dry container, on wet ice, to Hatfield Laboratory Services at OHSU. This is not the recommended treatment for optimal preservation of the specimen. Consideration should be given to rescheduling the biopsy to allow coordination between the sending facility and OHSU.

In all cases, it is imperative to notify the Neuromuscle Lab, 503 494-6781, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm before sending the specimen.

CONTACT: Neuromuscle Lab at 503 494-6781 for information.

Histochemical Stain With FS Muscle (Each)

Results are generally available in 1 to 2 business days. Urgent are available the same day.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. 

See Hospital Policy "Surgical Specimens for Pathology and Outside Review" for specimens requiring Gross Examinations only.

20 minutes from receipt of tissue (single specimen, non-Neuropathology)
 

Call 503 494-6776, Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. During other hours call the paging operator at 503 494-8211 and request the Pathology Resident On Call.

Specimens for Frozen Section examination may be placed into clean, clearly labeled, leakproof containers.

Fresh tissue for intraoperative consultation (Frozen Section examination) is sent via pneumatic tube system from the ORs to Surgical Pathology, 5th floor Dillehunt Hall.
It is CRITICAL to phone the department at 503 494-6791 prior to sending tissue. This is done to provide an alert to faculty and staff of imminent arrival and to insure that the staff will begin investigating specimen whereabouts if receipt is not timely.

If pneumatic tube system is unavailable or inadequate for specimen transport call Material Transport Dispatch at 503 494-5619 for a STAT ground transport.

See Hospital Policy "Surgical Specimens for Pathology and Outside Review" for specimens requiring examination.

Results are generally available 14 days after receipt of the specimen.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

GENERAL: Correct interpretation of muscle and nerve biopsies is strongly dependent on the clinical setting. It is therefore imperative that pertinent clinical information, including medications and the name of the physician responsible for the patient, accompanies the specimen. This may be either faxed (503-494-2025) the day the specimen is shipped, or preferably e-mailed to NPohsu.edu. (Opens in a new window) E-mail information may be sent in advance as long as the approximate date of surgery is indicated. Specimens without history will be evaluated by H&E stain only.

NERVE: Preferred Length: 1.5 cm. Avoid stretching or crushing nerve. Keeping the fresh nerve straight, place it on a narrow strip of filter paper, cut slightly longer than the nerve. Immerse in 10% neutral buffered formalin. The nerve will adhere to the paper and this will maintain the orientation of the fibers.

SHIPMENT: Arrival at OHSU should be no later that 4:00 pm.
Notify Neuromuscle Lab at 503-494-6781 of expected delivery time and additional pertinent information e.g. flight number, arrival time, air waybill number, FedEx tracking number.

SHIPPING LABEL INFORMATION:

• Cab or courier:
  • Hatfield Laboratory Services
    Rm HRC9D20
    Hatfield Research Center
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road
    Portland, OR
    Notify Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822, upon arrival
• FedEx:
  • SURGICALPATHOLOGYL471
    OHSU
    Matthew Wood, MD, PhD
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road
    Portland, OR 97239
    Attn: Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822
• Air:
  • Matthew Wood, MD, PhD
    Surgical Pathology, L471
    OHSU
    3181 SW Sam Jackson Park RD
    Portland, OR 97239
    Attn: Neuromuscle Lab, pager 16822

ADDENDUM:
Re: Arrival of specimens at OHSU- alternative procedure for nerves.
If the specimen cannot be delivered to OHSU by 4:00 pm, the following procedure can be followed:

The specimen should be retained at the sending lab until the following OHSU workday. Specimens should be kept on saline-moistened (not soaked) gauze, in a dry closed container, in the refrigerator. If the following day is a Saturday or a holiday, then the specimen should be held (even over the weekend if necessary), until the next available OHSU workday. The next morning, OHSU should be contacted prior to shipping, and then the specimen shipped in the morning on moistened gauze, in a dry container, on wet ice, to Hatfield Laboratory Services at OHSU. This is not the recommended treatment for optimal preservation of the specimen. Consideration should be given to rescheduling the biopsy to allow coordination between the sending facility and OHSU.

In all cases, it is imperative to notify the Neuromuscle Lab, 503 494-6781, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm before sending the specimen.

Contact: Muscle Lab at 503 494-6781

Results are generally available 2 to 5 days after receipt of the specimen. Urgent are available the same day.

Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

Tissue collected in the ORs should be submitted fresh (unfixed).
Place specimens into clean, clearly labeled leakproof containers.
Deliver immediately to Surgical Pathology, 5th floor Dillehunt Hall.

Exceptions:
Very small specimens (0.5 cm in largest dimension aggregate) should be placed in 1 ounce or 4 ounce prefilled formalin containers available through the Logistics department.
Large specimens (limbs, etc.) should be wrapped in plastic and sealed to prevent leakage during transportation. Sharp edges should be covered to prevent injury to hospital personnel.

See Hospital Policy "Surgical Specimens for Pathology and Outside Review" for specimens requiring examination.

Biopsy Tissue Examination, Nerve Biopsy, Muscle Biopsy, Renal Biopsy