Ear Cytology

MANUALLY

• You should label the slide with the name of the pet on the short side, and the cells should be placed L on top, R underneath

• The swabs should be rolled across the slide in order to prevent cell damage and should be passed through a flame on the underside for a second or two to fix the cells (this is particularly helpful with excess ear wax cases)

• Take the fixative labeled Ears and begin to dip - use a clothespin to help with grip.

• Blue stain - 20 seconds , Red stain - 20 seconds, Purple stain - 20 seconds

• After the slide is stained and dried (can use a kim wipe to BLOT dry the slide), it is placed on the stage of the microscope and read on the high and dry setting. 

Imagyst

• You should label the slide with the name of the pet on the short side, and the cells should be placed L on top, R underneath - for the Imagyst to do it's job efficiently, it's recommended the cells be placed close to each other 

• The swabs should be rolled across the slide in order to prevent cell damage and there is NO heat fixative needed for this machine

• Take the fixative labeled Ears and begin to dip - use a clothespin to help with grip.

• Little to no extra buildup/wax - Blue stain - 1 minute , Red stain - 30 seconds, Purple stain - 30 seconds

• Buildup and Wax - Blue stain - 1.5 - 2 minutes , Red stain - 30 seconds, Purple stain - 30 seconds

• After the slide is stained and dried (can use a kim wipe to BLOT dry the slide), add one drop of immersion oil and place the large thin slide over the glass slide (next to the fecal centrifuge and oil) - if there is excess oil, you MUST blot that dry with a Kim wipe to avoid damaging the Imagyst

• Choose a scanner on the Imagyst website, put the slide on the scanner, select areas of scanning on the slide*, and click Run

• *When selecting the areas of the slide to run, choose a small area that will be most time-effective