source: Neuroscience News
We would like to thank you again for your donation to the Mayo Clinic brain bank. Through the participation of families like yours, well-characterized brain samples from both affected individuals, as well as normal controls, have allowed investigators to improve understanding of the neuropathology, genetics, biochemistry and molecular biology of neurodegenerative disorders.
At the time of your loved one’s death, your family allowed Mayo Clinic researchers to perform an autopsy. The final report is written by Dennis Dickson, MD, the neuropathologist who examined the brain tissue. The report is quite technical. This page will explain the information included in the neuropathology report.
Descriptions
The neuropathologist is a physician who has received special training in the examination of brain tissue. One of the first steps that a neuropathologist completes is a careful inspection of the brain, including its weight and condition. This information is found in the report under the heading “Neuropathology Gross Description.”
Next, the neuropathologist identifies different regions of the brain, which will be studied in greater detail. These regions are listed in the section entitled “Neuropathology Microscopic Description” and typically include those parts of the brain that are most affected by changes due to your loved one’s clinical diagnosis.
Diagnoses & Comments
One of the goals of the examination of the brain is to verify the clinical diagnosis and also to determine if there are any other changes in the brain that might suggest another diagnosis or any other diseases. During the careful examination of the brain, it is not unusual for the neuropathologist to find evidence of more than one disease process in an individual. Therefore, in the section entitled “Neuropathology Diagnoses” you may see more than one disease process listed.
For example, in many brains of older individuals, changes characteristic of Alzheimer disease may be found. This does not necessarily mean that the individual had symptoms of dementia or forgetfulness during their life. A number of studies have now shown that some individuals with brain changes consistent with Alzheimer disease have no symptoms of disease while others with only mild brain changes may have severe dementia.
At the end of the report, you will find a “Comments” section. This is a summary of the important findings that were made after the review of the brain tissue.
Questions?
source: Chokniti/Pexels
Autopsy is an extremely important part of research into neurodegenerative disorders and provides us with an invaluable way to further study the parts of the brain that are affected by these devastating diseases. We hope that this explanation of the autopsy report will help you and your family better understand the autopsy of your loved one.
If you have additional questions or would like to discuss in more detail the autopsy report or any other aspect of autopsy planning and brain donation, please feel free to contact Brain Support Network, 650-814-0818, or the Mayo Clinic brain bank, 904-953-2439.
We thank you again for your important gift to science and we again extend our condolences on the loss of your loved one.