Decalcification of Bone and Teeth Under Vacuum- A Rapid Method for Producing Hard Tissue Preparations

Abstract

The time required for decalcification of histologic specimens must be considered a problem of great importance. By performing the decalcification under vacuum it has been possible to reduce the time required for this process to 1/10. The rate of the process is proportional to the vacuum, hence a rather high degree of vacuum is recommended (about 74 cm. Hg). If the water pressure is sufficiently high, a vacuum pump fixed to the water tap can be used. It must be constructed with a valve to prevent water from flowing back into the acid bottles. The quality of the slides obtained in this way is usually better. No disadvantages have been observed after using the method for 6 mos.