Introductory Pathology

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• Pathology is a discipline involving both basic science and clinical practice.
• It is the study of the structural and functional changes in cells, tissues, and organs that underlie disease.
• The study of pathology is divided into 2 areas:

1. General Pathology: is concerned with the reactions of cells and tissues to abnormal stimuli that underlie all diseases;
2. Special or Systemic Pathology: is concerned with the specific responses of specialised organs and tissues to more or less well defined stimuli.

• There are 4 aspects of a disease process that form the core of pathology:

1. Aetiology;
2. Pathogenesis;
3. Morphologic changes;
4. And clinical significance.

• This is the "cause" of the disease.
• There are 2 major classes:

1. Intrinsic or genetic (e.g., single-gene disorders);
2. And acquired (e.g., infectious disease).

• The concept of one etiologic agent to one disease is no longer sufficient, however.
• Genetic factors are involved in some acquired diseases (e.g., atherosclerosis) and vice versa.

• This is the sequence of events in the response of the cells or tissues to the etiologic agent.

• This is the structural alterations of cells or tissues that are either:

1. Characteristic of the disease;
2. Or diagnostic of the etiologic process.

• Virtually all forms of organ injury start with molecular or structural alteration in cells.
• Thus it is important to study how cell injury and cellular interactions lead collectively to tissue or organ injury.

Bibliography

Cotran, R., Kumar, V., Collins, T. (1999) Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease 6th Ed. W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Robbins, S., Cotran, R., Kumar, V. (1995) Pocket Companion to Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease 5th Ed. W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

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