Microscopy

[Sarah]

The use of the microscope; investigation with the microscope.

[Zipporah Schumaker]

Microscopy can be done quickly, but accuracy depends on the experience of the microscopist and quality of equipment. Regulations often limit physicians’ use of microscopy for diagnostic purposes outside a certified laboratory.
Microscopic examination of tissue may be required to distinguish invasive disease from surface colonization—a distinction not easily achieved by culture methods.
Most specimens are treated with stains that color pathogens, causing them to stand out from the background, although wet mounts of unstained samples can be used to detect fungi and certain other pathogens.
The clinician orders a stain based on the likely pathogens, but no stain is 100% specific. Most samples are treated with Gram stain and, if mycobacteria are suspected, with an acid-fast stain. However, some pathogens are not easily visible using these stains; if these pathogens are suspected, different stains or other identification methods are required.
Because microscopic detection usually requires a microbe concentration of at least about 1 #215; 104-5/mL, most body fluid specimens (eg, cerebrospinal fluid) are concentrated (eg, by centrifugation) before examination.

[Agnes]

the use, design, or production of microscopes: