PATHOLOGICAL ANATOMY I AND AUTOPSY TECHNIQUES
cod. 1006209

Academic year 2024/25
3° year of course - First semester
Professor
Attilio CORRADI
Academic discipline
Patologia generale e anatomia patologica veterinaria (VET/03)
Field
Discipline anatomo-patologiche ed ispettive veterinarie
Type of training activity
Characterising
92 hours
of face-to-face activities
7 credits
hub: PARMA
course unit
in ITALIAN

Integrated course unit module: PATHOLOGICAL ANATOMY I

Learning objectives

Dublin Descriptors
D1 KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
The student, future veterinarian, must:
a) to know the pathology of organs: post mortem alterations, ontogenetic pathologies, metabolic alterations, regressive processes, circulatory disturbances, inflammatory processes, parasitic lesions, and neoplasms.
b) to know the macroscopic and microscopic pathological features for a differential diagnosis of domestic animal diseases.
c) to know the application of cytological/histological and biotechnological techniques for the study of cellular and tissular pathological changes for making a diagnosis of animal diseases.
d) to set pathology of organs, apparatuses, systems in the cause-effect mechanisms, space-time pathological evolution and consequent systemic pathological effects in relation to the pathological timing (acute, sub-acute, chronic).
e) knowledge of cadaveric alterations, techniques of execution of necroscopy (species-specific), techniques for collecting biological matrices for ancillary purposes.
f) to participate, in collaboration with a teacher or a tutor, in drawing up a specie-specific necroscopic report.

D2 APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING;
The student must demonstrate by himself that she/he has acquired:
a) the capacity to correlate gross pathology and related histopathological features to spontaneous disease of specif organ, apparatus or system as well as of multiorgan pathologies in systemic diseases of domestic animals.
b) the capacity to combine the cause-effect, timing and dynamics of pathology of organs, apparatuses and systems in relation to unspecific or specific diseases and/or to diseases of multifactorial or concausal origins.

D3 MAKING JUDGEMENTS
The student, at the end of the educational program, will be able to:
a) describe and interpret autonomously the gross and histo lesions occurring in an organ, an apparatus or a system affected by pathology
b) set the history and put the symptoms/clinical signs in relation to lesions (gross and histo), or of the causa mortis, indicating the pathological mechanisms involving organs as well the aetiology of the disease, also using a differential diagnosis approach.
c) formulate a prognostic scoring related to specific pathology as well as pathological local or sistemic envolvment

D4 COMMUNICATION
The student, at the end of the educational program, will be able to:
a) expose clearly, orally or in writing, with synthetic and exhaustive approach, using appropriate technical terminology, the pathologies can affect organs, apparatuses and systems of domestic animals
b) demonstrate the ability to exhibit, to a composite audience, students and pathologists, the fundamentals knowledge of pathological veterinary anatomy.

D5 LIFELONG LEARNING
The student, at the end of the educational program, will be able to:
a) consult and understand, indipendently, scientific papers other than textbooks
b) independently perform a bibliographic consultation on specific pathologic topics
c) to have a good familiarity of veterinary pathological anatomy to allow her/him to study and understand of clinical and non-clinical subjects that characterize the veterinary profession.

Prerequisites

It is advisable for the students know the propaedeutics subjects: General Pathology, Immunopathology and Physiopathology, Microbiology and Epidemiology, Parasitology-Parasitic Diseases.
To support the exam the student must have passed the propaedeutics subjects exams: General Pathology, Immunopathology and Physiopathology, Microbiology and Epidemiology, Parasitology-Parasitic Diseases.

Course unit content

Veterinary pathological anatomy is a professional discipline of veterinary medicine that studies the pathologies / diseases of animals of veterinary medical interest, also in a comparative way, in the vision of one health - one medicine, through the morphopathological and biological-molecular examination of organs, tissues and cells affected by disturbing conditions of homeostasis.

Full programme

PATHOLOGICAL ANATOMY I
Hemolymphopoietic organs: Bone marrow: involution, hyperplasia, aplasia, gelatinous atrophy, haemosiderosis, necrosis. Anaemia, leucocitosis end leucopenia
Lymph-nodes: hypoplasia, atrophy, pathological pigmentations, necrosis, abnormalities of blood flow and pneumatosis. Macroscopic and microscopic features of simple (acute and chronic), purulent, hemorrhagic and necrotizing, granulomatous and piogranulomatous lymphadenitis. Pathology of hemolymphnodes. Spleen: malformations, abnormalities of blood flow (passive hyperaemia, haematomas, infarcts), degenerations (atrophy, hyalinosis, amyloidosis, haemosiderosis, necrosis), splenitis ( hyperemic-haemorrhagic, hyperplastic, purulent, gangrenous, necrotizing, fibrous, granulomatous). Hemopoietic Tumours ( AFIP-WHO Classification ) in domestic animals.
Cardiovascular system: Heart: malformations, hydropericardium, hemopericardium, pericarditis (classification and aetiology); myocardiosis, myocardial necrosis (causes and effects), myocardial hypertrophy, myocarditis with particular reference to purulent, lymphocytic and granulomatous myocarditis, primitives cardiomyopathies. Endocardium: calcification, endocardiosis, fibroelastosis; endocarditis (pathogenesis, aetiology, classification). Tumours of hearth (AFIP-WHO classification)
Muscle. Congenital and inherited defects of muscle, degeneration, circulatory disturbances; nutritional, transport, toxic and exertional myopathies, myositis, parasitic diseases; neoplastic diseases. Bones and joint pathology: development abnormalities, diseases associated with abnormal matrix, osteoclast dysfunction, abnormal mineral homeostasis,fractures, osteochondrosis, infections of bone, bone tumors. Joints pathology: degenerative joint disease, Arthritis, Tumors.
Blood vessels: aneurysm, thrombosis, regressive arteropathies (calcifications, hyalinosis, fibrinoidosis, amyloidosis, arterosclerosis), arteritis (acute and chronic, pathogenesis). Veins: thrombosis, phlebitis. Lymphatics: lymphangectasia, lymphangitis. Parasites of vessels. Neoplasms of vessels.
Mammary gland: Congenital anomalies, acquired alterations, abnormalities of blood flow, mastitis: aetiology, pathogenesis and classification of the main types of bovine mastitis (fibrinopurulent or gangrenous mastitis,hemorrhagic-necrotizing mastitis, interstitial mastitis, granulomatous and piogranulomatous mastitis; mentions about ovine-caprine mastitis. Mammary tumours, epidemiology and etiology, WHO-IHCTDA Classification, histological grading and TNM system.
Skin :Macroscopic and microscopic elementary lesions in dermopathology. Dermatosis with endocrine (hypothyroidism, hypercorticism, hyperestrogenism) or carential induced alopecia; dermatosis with deposit (calcinosis, mucinosis). Dermatitis. Necrosis and subcutis steatonecrosis. Skin tumours: epithelial skin tumours, mesenchymal tumours and round cells tumours (mast-cell tumour, melanoma, histiocytoma, plasmacytoma). WHO-IHCTDA - World Health Organization – International Histological Classification of SkinTumors of Domestic Animals, 1998
AUTOPSY TECHNIQUES
Definition, aims, importance and limits of the autopsy. Tanatology.
Equipment. Cautions to take before, after and during the necropsy and relevant regulations.
Anamnesis, external examination. Incision of cutis, opening of the carcass and subcutis examination. Opening and examination of abdominal cavity, thoracic cavity, head, mouth and nasal cavity, neck and pelvis. Examination of single organs. Epicrisis and autoptic report.
Specimens collection and sending to the laboratory for cytological, histopathological and bacterial or virus isolation, toxicological analysis.

Bibliography

TEXTBOOKS
(Copies of the textbooks are available to the student at the Central Library "Gianelli" of the Department of Veterinary Science)
McGavin, Zachary Patologia veterinaria sistematica, Editore: Elsevier - Masson Edizione: IV 2010

CONSULTATIVE TEXTBOOK (A copy of the textbook is available at the library of the Pathology Unit of the Department of Veterinary Science)
Jubb K.V.F, Kennedy P.C., Palmer N.: Pathology of Domestic Animals. Academic Press (last edition)
Guarda F., Mandelli G., Trattato di Anatomia patologica veterinaria, IV Ed. UTET,Torino, 2013;
Marcato P.S., Patologia Sistematica Veterinaria, Il sole 24ore-Edagricole, Bologne, 2015
Taccini E., Rossi G., Gili C., Tecnica autoptica e diagnostica cadaverica, Poletto Editore, 2006.
Lectures are available on Elly platform.

Teaching methods

to study.
The student, in preparation for the exam, has the opportunity to study the organs examined during the exam session.
Teachers and tutors are available for the students on days and times: every The curriculum is organized in theoretical contents (ex-cathedra lectures) and theoretical-practical (histo lab and necroscopic room activities).
Lectures are supported by IT (video beam, online link to web sites).
Histo lab activities are performed cyto/hysto archive slides and or slides of specimen collected during necropsy room. The student can study cyto/histopathological slides by using a light microscope, equipped with four progressive optical objectives. Archive slides are related to pathologies treated in ex-cathedra lectures.
The student receive a digital copy of ex-cathedra lecture power point presentations as well as picture, gross and histo, of organs observed and discussed during theorethical-practical sessions.
The student is also free to photograph gross pathology of viscera and necropsy in order to create his own photo records.
The student, in preparation for the exam, has the opportunity to see the cyto/ histopathological slides, every day, in the morning and afternoon, outside of the teaching calendar, after enrolling in a booking list of accesses. The list of accesses guarantees equal opportunities for students, upholding them in the right week day during the opening hours of the Pathology Unit.
In the event of an emergency of any nature the educational activities will be performed on-line on the TEAMS Office 365 platform.

Assessment methods and criteria

Methodology / tools used to verify the achievement of expected results.
Examination of expected learning outcomes for indicators D1 and D2 is carried out through two written practice tests and an oral exam. The evaluation is expressed in thirty.
Practice test is divided into two moments:
A) observation, description and interpretation of elementar cyto/histo lesions
B) gross pathology examination of organs, apparatus or system and lesions reporting as well diagnosis hypothesis

Positive practical tests, a) and b), (evaluated at least eighteen/thirty) gives the student access to the oral exam, c), consisting of at least three questions on pathological anatomy (minimum two questions) and necroscopy techniques (one question). Positive oral examination is considered valid if the student is evaluated at least eighteen or thirty.
Positive evaluation of practical tests, a) and b), are valid for the next 12 months.
Student with a specific learning disability (DSA), certified under Law No. 170/2010, will be given access, at her/his discretion, to a reference textbook.
In order to pass the exam of "Veterinary Pathology and Necropsy Techniques", the student must have scores, in the individual tests (a, b, c), equal to or above eighteen/thirty. The final vote is based on the average of individual votes.
The expected learning outcomes included in the D3, D4 and D5 indicators are evaluated in the two semesters, monitoring individual and collective learning in order to organize the curriculum according to the verified professional skills. In the event of emergencies of any nature that require learners and teachers to be far away from the teaching structures, the exam sessions will be completed online on the TEAMS Office 365 platform.

Other information

Thirteen examination appeals are assured academic year. The date of exam are on-line on the web site (ESSE3). Nine examination appeals are for the regular students, while for so called “fuori corso” students further four examination appeals are fixed. Two subsequent examination appeals are separated, one from the other, for a minimum of 14 days. The examination committee consists of at least two pathologists.

2030 agenda goals for sustainable development

Protect the terrestrial ecosystem to favor a balance between animals in livestock production and environmental sustainability (soil, groundwater and atmosphere).