Digital/cyber nephropathology, clinical and research application

Abstract

Digital technology marked the first decade of the 21st century with the advent of whole slide imaging (WSI). Thanks to the invention of digital scanners, WSI technology enables the creation and permanent storage of high resolution images from traditional glass slides. The application of digital pathology has recently been explored within the subspecialty of renal pathology for teaching, pathology-based clinical trials, development of new classification systems, and in support to systems biology-based research in a setting of large consortia. Although an initial investment is required, several general advantages can be listed in support of its application, ultimately resulting in a more neutral budget: 1) enables the anywhere-anytime remote access model; 2) permanent storage of glass slides images, which otherwise with time may fade, get lost or broken; 3) allows annotation of specific structures for teaching, consultation, histology-based research or reproducibility studies; 4) archiving; 5) provide full transparency for regulatory agencies during clinical trials or for research protocols; 6) facilitate training of multiple students looking at the same annotated structures, whether in the classroom, during webinar sections or independent review. This presentation will highlight the current status of digital nephropathology applications in training, clinical and molecular research, and industry-sponsored clinical trials.