Rotation skills
Rotation bench guide
Educational draft for review. Use species-specific reference intervals and your instrument's validated procedures; unexpected or critical results need prompt clinical assessment.
- Use fresh, well mixed EDTA blood, ideally within an hour of collection.
- Place a small drop (about 2 to 3 mm) near one end of a clean glass slide.
- Hold the spreader slide at about 30 to 45 degrees in front of the drop, back it into the drop and let blood spread along its edge.
- Push forward in one smooth, steady motion without pressing down.
- Air dry quickly by waving the slide. Label the frosted end in pencil.
Adjust for PCV: low PCV (anemic) blood is thin and makes long smears, so use a steeper angle and push faster. High PCV blood is thick and makes short smears, so use a lower angle and push more slowly.
A good smear covers about two thirds to three quarters of the slide, has a smooth feathered edge, a visible monolayer and no ridges or holes.
Bench tip: Grease, slow drying and too much pressure cause streaks and holes. Wipe slides with alcohol and let them dry first.
Cornell eClinPath
A free online clinical pathology textbook and atlas from Cornell University. Use it to look up cell morphology images, analyte interpretation, test methods and species differences while on rotation.
Open eClinPath