Hospital laboratory methods for students, technicians, and clinicians

Front matter

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Preface

The purpose of this book is to place in the hands of the hospital laboratory worker and the technician of other small laboratories, directions for the tests that are commonly required on specimens sent to such laboratories.

These specimens may be grouped as clinical laboratory (urine, gastric contents, feces, sputum, and blood), bacteriological, surgical and autopsy specimens. The manner in which the material should be handled before and after it reaches the laboratory is indicated in a specific way. There are usually several methods for obtaining the same results but in no case has an attempt been made to enumerate these; the simplest procedure by which the object of the analysis can be obtained with the greatest certainty has been chosen. No methods that are new and not thoroughly tried out have been given.

The interpretation of. facts ascertained by chemical and cytological examinations is very often possible only after consideration of the clinical condition of the patient. To place interpretations on laboratory findings, therefore, necessitates a thorough consideration of the various diseases and this has not been attempted.

In our hands, the methods described below are used by the medical students taking clinical pathology and those electing a course in pathologic technic and by non-medical technicians to whom a course covering twenty-four weeks is offered during three consecutive summers.

For whatever merit there is in these methods, 1 wish to acknowledge my indebtedness to Dr. F. B. Mallory of the Harvard Medical School under whom I received instruction while student and assistant in the laboratory of the Boston City Hospital.