Favorite Special Stain

[pathstudent]

In order to one-up the epic geekdom of the favorite objective thread. What is your favoirte special stain?

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[Gene_]

a recut!

 

[Patho2009]

You cannot make it for special stains! In contrast to objectives, each stain has a specific use. However, my favorite stain (which is not a special stain) is H & E

 

[pathstudent]

You cannot make it for special stains! In contrast to objectives, each stain has a specific use. However, my favorite one is H & E, which is not listed

H&e ain't no special stain. And it about which special stain you find the most pleasing for any reason Function, aesthetic, complexity etc

 

[KCShaw]

Anything with methylene blue. Solely because it gives me a vague excuse to shout "..activate..Methylene..BLUE!" in my best comic-book-superhero voice, while pressing the secret button on my belt with one hand and thrusting the other hand dramatically-yet-somehow-purposefully into the air.

 

[Patho2009]

In cytology, I used to love Diff Quik and Toulidine blue (for immediate adequacy assessment)

For fungi, I like GMS


For mucin, I like mucicarmine more than alcian blue (for its rosy red)

 

[Entgegen]

Don't have much experience with the stains since I'm still a med student, but from what I've seen in the lab, it's a toss-up between alcian blue and trichrome...the contrast between the bright blue and pink is really cool.

 

[gbwillner]

Pentachrome!!!! FTW

Every slide looks like a Van Gogh.

Least favorite:
Worthless starry stain

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Tie between t-blue and trichrome

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Least favorite:
Worthless starry stain

 

[pathstudent]

Pentachrome!!!! FTW

Every slide looks like a Van Gogh.

Least favorite:
Worthless starry stain

Never seen one. Can you take a picture of one and post it. Sounds dreamy.

My least favorite would probably be retic or silver.

 

[pathstudent]

Pentachrome!!!! FTW

Every slide looks like a Van Gogh.

Least favorite:
Worthless starry stain

Wait a minute. I think pentachrome is what I call a trichome-VVG. That's my favorite!

 

[lipomas]

I think least favorite stain would be an interesting poll. Warthin Starry FTW.

 

[zao275]

a recut!

That is one of Dr. Rapini's favorite sayings: "The cheapest special stain (or immuno) is a recut!"

 

[deleted314957]

mine is much like the recut--the "tomorrow" stain.

 

[Cruzinman]

My "aha" moment in med school was doing a late night acid fast stain on sputum specimen from a patient with cough and FUO. The slide light up with red bugs, confirming the dx before the x-rays were developed. Also, one time I did an Oil Red O stain on a patient with suspected fat embolism, and saw the typical apple green birefringence under plane polarized light.

 

[horrendoma]

Giemsa or its variants. They are damn pretty if done right. Superb for marrow trephines.

 

[pathstudent]

Giemsa or its variants. They are damn pretty if done right. Superb for marrow trephines.

Great point. I can't believe I forgot giemsa. I'm not a hemepather though. A bone marrow Is a thing of beauty though v