Medical Histology

MEDS 3027C | 3 credit hours

Spring Semester | Syllabus (PDF)

TR 9:30 – 10:50 AM

David Askew, PhD | david.askew@uc.edu | 513-558-2395

Histology is the study of the normal microscopic anatomy of the cells and tissues that comprise the human body. This course will introduce students to this field and its importance to human medicine. Histology is also the foundation for histopathology, a clinically related discipline that focuses on the identification of abnormalities in the microscopic anatomy of human tissues. Histopathological analysis is one of the most important tools used in anatomic pathology, a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of human disease. In addition, histopathology is widely used in the medical sciences to understand how genetic manipulation of the laboratory mouse impacts tissue structure and function. 

In this course, didactic lectures on normal histology will be complemented by active learning in a clinical case presentation format to illustrate common histopathological processes that occur in human disease. Case presentations will be directed by pathologists (physicians who specialize in the diagnosis and management of human disease by laboratory methods). Throughout the semester, we will study the theory and application of normal and abnormal histology through class lectures, textbook readings, interactive review sessions, real-world clinical case presentations, and a variety of online exercises.

The illustration (right) is a histological section of the gastrointestinal tract.

Learning Objectives

• Distinguish the major organ systems at the light microscopic level
• Describe the relationship between tissue structure and function
• List the medical and allied health disciplines that use histology for disease diagnosis
• Differentiate between normal and abnormal tissue in a histopathology specimen
• Identify some of the major pathological processes in human disease that are evident by histological analysis

Textbook

Anthony L. Mescher (2013) Junquiera’s Basic Histology:
Text and Atlas, 13th edition, Lange/McGraw-Hill, New York
Softback ISBN: 978-0071780339 
View the E-Book at AccessMedicine via a UC Libraries subscription