Total dietary regulation in the treatment of diabetes / by Frederick M. Allen, Edgar Stillman and Reginald Fitz.

  • Frederick Madison Allen
Date:
1919
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Total dietary regulation in the treatment of diabetes / by Frederick M. Allen, Edgar Stillman and Reginald Fitz. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    might reveal diabetes in some instances where ordinary stains showed normal appearances. These conditions may in fact occur to some extent; but on the whole it is found, in agreement with conclusions expressed by Homans in conversation, that the special stains do not remove the difficulties of diagnosis. They furthermore are rather difficult and laborious in application, they demand a freshness of tissue and perfection of fixation seldom attainable in human autopsies, and even under ideal conditions in pathologic material they often fail to give the differentiation desired. It is fortunate for practical convenience that routine methods care- fully applied are sufficient. More or less can be learned from ordi- nary pathologic specimens in Zenker or formaldehyde solution, and neutral formaldehyde or Miiller-formol mixtures are preferred by some. Instead of the usual 5 per cent acetic Zenker, the fixative of choice in the present work has been either a plain solution of 2.5 per cent potassium bichromate and 5 per cent mercuric chloride, or the same solution with addition of 1 or 2 per cent acetic acid just before using. Lane and Bensley have found that stronger acidity tends to dissolve out the specfic island granules. The most im- portant consideration for the study of hydropic degeneration is the freshness of the tissue. The autopsy should be performed immedi- ately after death if possible, and the first step in it should be the re- moval and weighing of the pancreas, followed by immediate fixation of the pancreas specimens. It is advisable to take specimens from different parts of the gland in separate bottles. The procedure here has unconsciously imitated Weichselbaum and Stang] in taking them in three sets, from the head, body, and tail respectively. It is also desirable to take two kinds of specimens from each location: one, pieces of ordinary size, for the purpose of examining the number of islands and the general pathology; the other, tiny bits of tissue, only a few millimeters in dimensions for the sake of the quickest possible penetration of the fixative for the study of the cytology of the islands with either special or routine stains. For the latter the combina- tion of eosin and either hematoxylin or methylene blue has been satis- factory in the present work. The fixation of other specimens in formaldehyde for fat or in absolute alcohol for glycogen stains, and other special measures, are of course added when desired. Persons