Intro to clinical sciences Flashcards
Hospital autopsies
Account for less than 10% UK autopsies
Requires medical certificate of cause of death
Used for teaching, research, governance
Medico-legal autopsies
Account for more than 90% UK autopsies
CORONIAL AUTOPSIES - death is not due to unlawful action
FORENSIC AUTOPSIES - death is thought unlawful
Role of coronial autopsy - answer what 4 questions?
Who was deceased?
When did they die?
Where did they die?
How did their death come about?
Why deaths are referred to the coroner? 3
Presumed natural
Presumed unnatural
Presumed iatrogenic
Why deaths referred to coroner - presumed natural
Cause of death unknown
Patient has not seen doctor within 14 days prior to death
Most common reason for referral
Why deaths referred to coroner - presumed iatrogenic
Peri/ postoperative deaths
Anaesthetic deaths
Illegal abortions
Complications of therapy (even if recognised complication)
Why deaths referred to coroner - presumed unnatural
Accidents Industrial deaths Suicides Unlawful killing (eg murder) Neglect Custody death
Who refers for autopsy?
Doctor
Registrar of BDM
Others
Who refers for autopsy - doctors
NOT a statutory duty to refer
Common law duty
GMC will provide guidance
Who refers for autopsy - registrar of BDM
STATUATORY DUTY to refer
Who refers for autopsy - others
Police
Relatives
Who performs which autopsies - histopathologists
Hospital autopsies Coronial autopsies (NATURAL deaths, drowning, suicide, accidents, road traffic deaths, fire deaths, industrial deaths, peri/postoperative deaths
Who performs which autopsies - forensic pathologists
Coronial autopsies (homicide, death in custody, neglect, any from list above that may be due to action of 3rd party)
What are the 5 stages of an autopsy?
- History/ scene
- External examination
- Evisceration
- Internal examination
- Reconstruction
What tests and processes does an autopsy include?
Microbiology Toxicology Radiology Digital photography Genetics HISTOLOGY
Autopsy - external examination
IDENTIFICATION formal identifiers gender, age body habitus (build) body modification clothing jewellery DISEASE AND TREATMENT INJURIES
Autopsy - evisceration
- Y shaped inscision - from behind ears down to clavicles then down to midline
- Open ALL body cavities
- Examine all organs in situ
- Remove thoracic and abdominal organs
- Remove brain
Autopsy - internal examination
Heart and great vessels Lungs, trachea, bronchi Liver, gallbladder pancreas Avoid lower GI tract if possible (infection risk) Spleen, thymus, lymph nodes GU tract (common place for cancer) Endocrine organs CNS
Acute inflammation definition
The initial and often transient series of tissue reactions to injury - may last from few hours to few days
An example of acute inflammation
Appendicitis
What is inflammation?
Local, physiological response to tissue injury
Not a disease, usually a manifestation of disease
Inflammation benefits
Destruction of invading microorganisms
Walling off of an abscess cavity
Preventing the spread of infection
Inflammation limitations
DISEASE - an abscess in brain act as space occupying lesion compressing vital surrounding structures
FIBROSIS occurring from chronic inflammation (may distort tissues and permanently alter their function)
5 steps of acute inflammation?
- INITIAL REACTION of tissue to injury
- VASCULAR COMPONENT: dilation of vessels
- EXUDATIVE COMPONENT: vascular leakage of protein rich fluid
- NEUTROPHIL POLYMORPH - is the characteristic cell recruited to tissue
- OUTCOME
4 outcomes of acute inflammation occurring?
Resolution
Suppuration (pus formation, abscess)
Organisation (granulation tissue)
Progression to chronic inflammation
‘Organisation’ outcome of acute inflammation
- SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE to connective tissue framework and/ or tissue lacks ability to REGENERATE SPECIALISED CELLS
- healing by FIBROSIS (scar formation)
- dead tissues, exudate removed by MACROPHAGES
- filled ingrowth GRANULATION TISSUE (this is organisation)
- granulation tissue produces COLLAGEN to give fibrous scar
What is granulation tissue?
A specialised vascular connective tissue
IMPORTANT - Give 6 causes of acute inflammation
- microbial infections (pyogenic (pus causing) bacteria, viruses)
- hypersensitivity (parasites, tubercule bacilli)
- physical agents (trauma, ionising radiation, heat, cold)
- chemicals (corrosives, acid, alkalis, reducing agents)
- bacterial toxins
- tissue necrosis (ischaemic infarction)
Causes of acute inflammation - microbial infections
One of most common causes
Viruses -> death of individual cells by intracellular multiplication
Causes of acute inflammation - microbial infections - BACTERIA
Release specific EXOTOXINS (chemicals synthesised by them that specifically initiate inflammation
Release specific ENDOTOXINS (associated with their cell walls)
(some organisms cause immunologically mediated inflammation through hypersensitivity reactions)
(parasitic infections + tuberculous inflammation are instances where hypersensitivity is important)
Causes of acute inflammation - hypersensitivity
ALTERED STATE of immunological responsiveness causes inappropriate or excessive immune rxn that damages tissues
All have CELLULAR or CHEMICAL mediators similar to those involved in inflammation
Causes of acute inflammation - physical agents
Physical trauma, UV/ ionising radiation, burns, excessive cooling (frostbite)
Cause tissue damage leading to inflammation
Causes of acute inflammation - irritant and corrosive chemicals
Corrosive = acids, alkalis, oxidising agents
Inflammation through GROSS TISSUE DAMAGE
Specific chemical irritants from infecting agents DIRECTLY cause inflammation
Causes of acute inflammation - tissue necrosis
Death of tissues from lack of oxygen/ nutrients from inadequate blood flow (infarction) = potent inflammatory stimulus
EDGE of recent infarction often shows acute inflammatory response due to PEPTIDES from dead tissue
5 essential macroscopic appearances of acute inflammation
- Redness - rubor
- Heat - calor
- Swelling - tumor
- Pain - dolor
- Loss of function
Acute inflammation - redness, rubor
dilation of small blood vessels within damaged area
eg sunburn, cellulitis due to bacterial infection, acute conjunctivitis
Acute inflammation - heat, calor
Seen only in peripheral parts of body eg skin
Due to increased blood flow (hyperaemia) so vascular dilation, delivery warm blood to area
SYSTEMIC FEVER from some chemical mediators of inflammation also contributes
Acute inflammation - swelling, tumor
- Oedema (accumlulation fluid in extravascular space as part of fluid exudate)
- Lesser extent- physical mass of inflammatory cells migrating to area
- Formation of new connective tissue
Acute inflammation - pain, dolor
- Stretching and distortion of tissues from inflammatory oedema
- Pus under pressure in abscess cavity
- Some chemical mediators of acute inflammation (bradykinin, prostaglandins, serotonin) can induce pain
Acute inflammation - loss of function
- Movement of inflamed area consciously and reflexly inhibited by pain
- Severe swelling may physically immobilise
What 3 things accumulate in extracellular spaces of damaged tissues during early stages of acute inflammation?
- Oedema fluid
- Fibrin
- Neutrophil polymorphs
What is essential for HISTOLOGICAL diagnosis of acute inflammation?
Neutrophil polymorph (cellular component)
IMPORTANT - 3 stages of acute inflammatory RESPONSE PROCESS?
- Change vessel calibre (wider) so increased vessel flow
- Increased vascular permeability, formation of FLUID exudate
- Formation CELLULAR exudate, neutrophil polymorphs migrate to extravascular space
Vascular changes in acute inflammation: exudation
- Pre-capillary sphincters (formed by smooth muscle of arteriolar walls) RELAX
- Increased capillary hydrostatic pressure so plasma proteins escape into extravascular space
- More fluid leaving vessel than is returned
Acute inflammation- 3 causes of increased vascular permeability?
- Chemical mediators eg histamine, bradykinin, NO (dilator), C5a (complement), PAF - immediate transient
- Severe direct vascular injury eg trauma - immediate sustained
- Endothelial cell injury: Xrays, bacterial toxins - delayed prolonged
Acute inflammation - 4 stages of neutrophil polymorph emigration?
- Margination of neutrophils
- Adhesion of neutrophils
- Neutrophil emigration
- Diapedesis (passage through walls)
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorph emigration - stage 1 Margination
- Loss intravascular fluid
- Increase plasma viscosity
- At site of acute inflammation, means neutrophils flow in PLASMATIC ZONE
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorph emigration - stage 2 Adhesion
- PAIRED ADHESION MOLECLUES on leucocyte and endothelium interact
- Pavementing (adhesion to vascular endothelium)
- Early only in venules
(chemical inflammatory mediators can make adhesion molecules more active)
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorph emigration - stage 3 Emigration
- Leucocytes migrate venules, small veins (not capillaries)
- Neutrophils, macrophages, eosinophil polymorphs INSERT PSEUDOPODIA, migrate, through basal lamina
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorph emigration - stage 4 Diapedesis
- RBCs escape passively (hydrostatic pressure)
- Lots RBCs in extravascular space implies severe vascular injury
Chemical mediators of acute inflammation - explanation of process
- Small area tissue damaged
- Tissue releases chemical substances which spread out to uninjured areas
- HISTAMINE and THROMBIN (released by original inflammatory stimulus) cause up-regulation of adhesion molecules on endothelial cell surface
- Causing very firm neutrophil adhesion
IMPORTANT - what 5 things do endogenous chemical mediators cause?
- Vasodilation
- Emigration of neutrophils
- Chemotaxis (attraction neutrophil polymorphs to certain chemicals)
- Increased vascular permeability
- Itching and pain
Acute inflammation - histamine
- Causes vascular dilatation, immediate transient phase increased vascular permeability
- Stored in preformed granules - immediate effect
- In: mast cells, basophil and eosinophil leucocytes, platelets
- Release stimulated by C3a, C5a, lysosomal proteins from neutrophils
Acute inflammation - 4 other chemical mediators
- Lysosomal compounds
- Eicosanoids (prostaglandin)
- Serotonin ( 5-hydroxytryptamine)
- Chemokine (chemotactic cytokine)
Acute inflammation - 4 plasma enzymatic cascade systems?
- Complement
- The Kinins
- Coagulation factors
- Fibrinolytic system
Acute inflammation - plasma cascades - the complement system
- Complex system interacting plasma proteins
- Major effector system for antibody mediated immune reactions
- Remove or destroy antigen - direct lysis or opsonisation
Acute inflammation - plasma cascades - ACTIVATION OF the complement system
- Tissue necrosis, cells release enzyme that can activate complement
- Infection - antigen antibody complexes - activate via classical pathway
- Infection - endotoxins gram neg bacteria - alternative pathway
Acute inflammation - plasma cascades - the kinin system
- Activated factor XII, plasmin activate conversion prekallikrein to kallikrein
- leucocyte proteases (trypsin) can activate prekallikrein
- Conversion of kininogens to kinins (eg bradykinin - vasodilation)
Acute inflammation - what 2 important chemical mediators do TISSUE MACROPHAGES secrete? and what effects do these chemical mediators have?
- The cytokines INTERLEUKIN-1 and TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR ALPHA
(their stimulatory effects occur after histamine and thrombin’s) - cause endothelial cells, fibroblasts, epithelial cells to secrete MCP-1, chemotactic protein, attracts neutrophil polymorphs
Acute inflammation - leucocytes
- Blood monocytes - arrive site of inflammation, leave vessels, transform to macrophages, more metabolically active, motile, phagocytic
- Phagocytosis enhanced opsonisation (by antibodies, complement)
- Most acute inflamm macrophages lesser role than neutrophil polymorphs
Acute inflammation - macrophages
- Appear first few hours, don’t predominate
- Later stage, neutrophils diminished, macrophage population enlarged by local proliferation
- Neutrophils and macrophages discharge lysosomal enzymes to extracellular fluid, aids digestion inflammatory exudate
Acute inflammation - lymphatics
- Terminal are blind ended endothelial lined
- In most tissues, similar number to capillaries
- Collecting lympatics drain to terminal, have valves (propel passively), neighbouring muscles contract, to nodes
- Dilate in acute inflamm to drain OEDEMA fluid of inflamm exudate
- Antigens to regional lymph nodes, recognition by LYMPHOCYTES
Acute inflammation - what colour does neutrophil polymorph stain using H&E?
- Nucleus = blue
- Cytoplasm = pink / purple
Acute inflammation - binding of immunoglobulins to microorganisms
- Bind by their Fab component
- Leaves Fc component exposed
- Neutrophils have surface receptor for Fc (so can bind microorganism before ingesting)
Acute inflammation - what are the two common cells which implement phagocytosis?
- Macrophages
- Neutrophil polymorphs
Acute inflammation - basic steps of phagocytosis?
- Opsonisation facilitates adhesion to cell surface
- Ingestion by phagocyte surrounding particle using pseudopodia
- Fuse = phagosome surrounded by cell membrane
- Lysosomes fuse phagosome = phagolysosomes, intracellular killing
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorphs - intracellular killing using NOXIOUS MICROBICIDAL AGENTS
Similar to bleach
- OXYGEN DEPENDENT (hydrogen peroxide + myeloperoxidase in cytoplasmic granules in presence of halide (Cl-) to produce potent microbicidal agent)
- OXYGEN INDEPENDENT (lysozyme (muramidase) and lactoferrin)
Acute inflammation - neutrophil polymorphs - effects of release of lysosomal products?
- damages local tissue - proteolysis - elastase, collagenases
- activates coag factor XII
- attracts leucocytes
- some increase vascular permeability
- some PYROGENS induce systemic fever act on hypothalamus
- lifespan only 1-3 days
- die locally, leave via lymphatics, removed by apoptosis
Acute inflammation - Role of mast cells?
- Stimulation by C3a/C5a components
- Release preformed inflamm mediators (histamine) stored in granules
- Metabolise ARACHIDONIC ACID into new inflamm mediators eg leukotrienes, prostaglandins, thromboxanes
Acute inflammation - special macroscopic appearances
Cardinal signs modified according to tissue + type of agent
- Serous inflammation
- Suppurative inflammation
- Membranous inflammation
- Pseudomembranous inflammation
- Necrotising (gangrenous) inflammation
Acute inflammation - beneficial effects of the fluid exudate?
- dilution of toxins (carried away in lymphats)
- entry of antibodies (lysis via complement, phagocytosis via opsonisation, neutralisation of toxins)
- transport of drugs
- fibrin formation (exuded fibrinogen, traps, matrix for formation granulation tissue)
- delivery of nutrients, oxygen (neutrophils)
- stimulation of immune response (lymph)
Acute inflammation - harmful effects (of lysosomal enzyme release) ?
- digestion of normal tissues (collagenases, proteases, vascular damage)
- swelling (children, enclosed spaces eg cranial cavity)
- inappropriate inflammatory response
4 main outcomes of acute inflammation - outcome 1 - resolution
- complete restoration to normal
- example acute lobar pneumonia
conditions that favour:
- minimal cell death/ damage
- organ capable of regen eg liver not CNS
- rapid phagocytosis
- rapid local vascular drainage