Collan Y
Anal Quant Cytol Histol. 1985 Dec;7(4):237-41.
The role of stereology and morphometry (including image analysis) in histopathology is considered. Diagnostic histopathology has its own character, which should be considered when quantitative methods are applied. Three different types of studies in histopathology can be distinguished: prospective, retrospective and routine diagnostic studies. The variation in these studies is due to differences in the methods and differences in how the methods are applied. The overall variation is smallest in prospective studies and largest in routine diagnostic studies. Statistical classification of the overall variation does not cover all relevant aspects of the situation in which we study the sample from one individual patient. In that situation, we do not get support from the samples of other patients. In fact, we should speak about group morphometry (statistical morphometry) when samples from several patients are studied and diagnostic morphometry when the sample from one individual patient is under investigation. In the former case, simple morphometric methods may be applicable (the researcher is interested in mean values). In the latter case, one would often like to analyze the sample in more detail. This is why the diagnostic situation may benefit from computerized image analysis, which allows collection of large amounts of data in a short time. On the other hand, the great variation between the pathologic and the normal can allow the use of simple methods. The above basic principles need be considered before morphometric and stereologic methods are applied. These methods are simple in practice and they should be included in the training of all pathologists.
本文探讨了体视学和形态计量学（包括图像分析）在组织病理学中的作用。诊断性组织病理学有其自身特点，在应用定量方法时应予以考虑。组织病理学研究可分为三种不同类型：前瞻性研究、回顾性研究和常规诊断研究。这些研究的差异源于方法的不同以及方法应用方式的不同。总体差异在前瞻性研究中最小，在常规诊断研究中最大。总体差异的统计分类并未涵盖我们研究单个患者样本时情况的所有相关方面。在那种情况下，我们无法从其他患者的样本中获得支持。实际上，当研究多个患者的样本时我们应称之为群体形态计量学（统计形态计量学），而当研究单个患者的样本时则称为诊断形态计量学。在前一种情况下，简单的形态计量方法可能适用（研究人员关注平均值）。在后一种情况下，人们通常希望更详细地分析样本。这就是为什么诊断情况可能受益于计算机化图像分析，它能在短时间内收集大量数据。另一方面，病理与正常之间的巨大差异使得简单方法也可使用。在应用形态计量学和体视学方法之前，需要考虑上述基本原则。这些方法在实践中很简单，应纳入所有病理学家的培训中。
