Cardiovascular Pathology

Consultative support is provided to adult and pediatric cardiologists, cardiothoracic and vascular surgeons by Stan Radio, M.D., through case analysis and discussion at clinicopathologic correlation conferences at Nebraska Medicine and throughout the region. Consultation may be requested in cases with acquired and/or congenital diseases from either adults or children as follows:

  • Autopsy or native hearts explanted at transplantation, including ischemic and valvular diseases or myopathies or congenital defects including postoperative changes
  • Native or prosthetic valves
  • Native endomyocardial biopsies to identify cardiomyopathies, myocarditis, or drug toxicity
  • Posttransplant endomyocardial biopsies for acute cellular or antibody mediated rejection, opportunistic infection, or post transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD)
  • Vascular aneurysms
  • Temporal or other artery biopsies such as vasculitides
  • Portions of myocardium, pericardium or vascular specimens received from the operating room
  • Cardiac tumors

We accept and prefer formalin fixed wet tissue, especially in regards to autopsy/explant hearts or valves but also welcome glass slides for consultation. Examination of native endomyocardial biopsies includes light microscopy, histochemical stains, immunohistochemistry when necessary and if clinically indicated, electron microscopy. Biopsy specimens should be processed with this in mind and one piece may need to be fixed in picric acid-paraformaldehyde-glutaraldehyde (PAPG) and one piece may need to be flash frozen for molecular viral studies. When cardiac tumors are resected a portion should be submitted fresh in Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RPMI) media for cytogenetics.

Consultation is available for adult and pediatric cardiovascular disease including acquired and congenital entities. Specimen types include autopsy or hearts explanted at the time of transplantation, native or prosthetic valves, native or post transplant endomyocardial biopsies, aortic aneurysms or dissections and all other cardiovascular specimens received from the operating room.