What is pathology and laboratory medicine?
Pathology and laboratory medicine is a diagnostic specialty, which performs the testing, diagnosis, treatment, management and prevention of human disease. It provides modern scientific medical knowledge and plays a critical role in evidence-based medicine.
What is pathology?
Pathology means the study of disease. Pathology and laboratory medicine can be divided into two sections: clinical pathology and anatomic pathology.
Clinical pathology
Clinical pathology performs the test of blood, urine, and other body fluids with respect to clinical chemistry, hematology, microbiology, immunology, and immunohematology.
Anatomic pathology
Anatomic pathology performs the testing of tissue specimens, especially the examination of bone, joints, tendons, ligaments, and muscle under the microscope.
Who are pathologists?
Pathologists are the doctors who interpret biopsy or cytology specimens, monitor laboratory testing, and help interpret those laboratory tests.
Significance of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
- A key component of a patient’s healthcare.
- Pathology data are a crucial component of patient care.
- It is an important part of any health system.
- Diagnosis, choice of treatment, predicting outcomes, and monitoring disease progression are in many cases impossible without pathology and laboratory services.