The biopsy has become an established essential medical procedure to determine the presence or extent of a disease. The gastrointestinal tract is commonly biopsied during endoscopy. However, chatter is a frequently encountered microtomy problem on gastrointestinal biopsy diagnostic preparations. Chatter impairs pathologists' interpretations and causes an increase in turnaround time. This project sought to determine the relationship between the presence of chatter and fixative type and time interval. Three fixatives were used: neutral buffered formalin, alcoholic formalin, and acid alcohol formalin. Samples were fixed at increasing time intervals: 6, 8, 12, and 24 hours. Each slide was given a score based on its staining quality, artifacts, and overall diagnostic value. As a result, alcoholic and acid alcoholic formalin fixed tissues demonstrate less chatter and fewer sectioning artifacts. Neutral buffered formalin fixed tissue is prone to show chatter but offers a better quality of staining. A shorter fixation time (6 hours) correlates with an increasing overall quality.
