Due to the reimbursement pressure labs are under, it seems that every medical journal or magazine that you pick up recently has articles about cutting costs in the laboratory.   The high cost of disposable microtome blades makes this an area that is ripe for cost savings.  The following are some tips/hints to help when you are asked by sales reps or your manager to test out another type of blade.   

• If the blade doesn't work initially, try flipping the blade over and see if it cuts any better on the "back" side of the blade.  Facet angles on a blade can change slightly during a production run.  It is possible that there is a variance in angle from one blade to the next or that the angles on one side of the blade may be slightly different than the angle on the flip side of the blade.                
• Remember to tweak your Microtome Blade Clearance setting, also known as the setting found on the side of the blade holder.  Typically the manufacturer of the microtome has a recommended setting (e.g. Thermo, Microm work best at setting 10 while Leica and Sakura microtomes are usually best at setting 5).  Trial and error are sometimes required when sampling a new blade to obtain the best cutting angle.  But during the initial trial, do not adjust the blade angle unless there are issues with using the new blade that are indicative of a clearance angle issue (knife rings on upstroke and sections are scratched is a good example of when an adjustment may need to be made to the clearance angle).
• Consider the temperature of the blocks and the room.  This is another factor to consider during trial of microtome blades.  A warm room can make the was more difficult to section and a room that is too cold will make ribboning more difficult.  The room should be cool but not too cold or there will not be enough heat produced by the friction of the cutting for the sections to attach and form a ribbon.  Optimum block temperature varies depending on the type of tissues and paraffin of course but the blocks should all be chilled for the same amount of time during the blade evaluation.  Chilling the blocks rapidly with freezing sprays should be minimized as they may cause the blocks to crack or cause buildup of ice on the block face.  

In closing I will leave you with this thought.  We are creatures of habit and it is natural to gravitate to the look & feel of products that we are most familiar with.  But if we can open ourselves to new possibilities; we can learn new skillsets and techniques that can improve the overall value we bring to our team.   

See you at the end of August at the NSH Convention!