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MATERIALS AND METHODS
Author(s) -
Andrzej Grajkowski,
Victor,
Serge L. Beaucage
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/j.1651-2227.1971.tb14981.x
Subject(s) - citation , medicine , information retrieval , library science , world wide web , computer science
1. Examination of arteries We studied the coronary arteries from 176 infants (109 male and 67 female) dying in the first month (31 days) of life. Hearts were fixed in cobalt formalin. The extramyocardial portions of the coronary arteries were dissected free, intact. Labelled sketches of gross specimens were made to aid in relating microscopic features to the branch pattern of each artery. Originally, one of each pair of arteries was paraffinembedded and the other was frozen for sectioning. Later, all were gelatin-embedded (54) to permit study of lipid in every vessel. Arteries from all but 3 infants were cut at close intervals longitudinally; the 6 vessels from the exceptions were serially sectioned transversely, as an aid to envisioning a composite artery in 3 dimensions. Paraffin sections were stained routinely with haematoxylin and eosin, phosphotungistic acid haematoxylin, orcein, periodic acid Schiff, Alcian blue, Prussian blue and von Kossa stains. Frozen sections were stained with oil red 0 (ORO) haematoxylin and light green, O R 0 haematoxylin and aldehyde fuchsin, OR0 haematoxylin and orcein, van Gieson and aldehyde fuchsin, and Masson’s trichrome. Preparations containing lipid in appreciable quantity, as shown in ORO-stained sections, were further examined for interceroids and ceroid (16). Several specimens were examined for cholesterol, by Schultz’s method (26). Sections were examined by light microscope. Findings were recorded for each case in drawings which showed the extent, depth and structure of every intimal thickening found, and the location and form of all visible lipid. We regarded as “intima” all tissue on the luminal aspect of the internal elastic lamina (IEL). An “intimal thickening”, for the purposes of this study, was defined as an area in which both cells and fibres were interposed between IEL and endothelium. Extent of intimal thickening seen in each artery was graded as follows: 0 (none seen), + (minimal-one or two small areas only), + + or + + + (intermediate) or + + + + (widespread-most of visible surface).