What Types Of Lights Do Surgeons Use In An Operating Room?
Surgical lighting is a must-have in the operating room. Thousands of procedures occur in an operating room each year. The surgeons who perform these procedures need to have the best lighting available to them to ensure that they see everything in front of them. A lack of adequate lighting could lead to costly errors that put patients at risk. Because it is not worth risking the wellbeing of patients, purchasing and installing the proper light fixtures in the operating room must occur before surgical procedures begin.
Understanding What Makes Surgical Lights Different
Surgical lights are not like the lights found in homes or traditional office buildings. These lights are much brighter to illuminate the operating table and provide the best view of body parts that a surgeon works on. These lighting fixtures come equipped with advanced technology for surgeons, including LED options that light up immediately and last a lot longer while wasting less energy. Unlike traditional light bulbs that get exceptionally hot when left on for extended periods, a surgeon can perform a procedure under the surgical lights for hours at a time without worrying about the bulbs producing that extra heat.
Deciding on the Fixture That Work Best in the Operating Room
Different surgical lighting fixtures are available for the operating room. It becomes a matter of preference more than anything. A few of the options that surgeons can have installed in operating rooms before performing procedures include:
- Adjustable round surgical lights attached to a mobile suspension system
- Rolling surgical lights that surgeons and assistants can quickly move from one side of the operating room to another
- Portable miniature surgical lights that require an assistant to hold
Many surgeons have a combination of these different lights in their operating rooms. The ones attached to the mobile suspension system are often installed directly above the operating table. The rolling surgical lights are off to the side and pushed around when the surgeon needs to have more lighting in a particular area. There might even come a time when the surgeon needs a far better view during an operation, which would require an operating assistant to hold a small handheld surgical light.
Before surgeons can complete surgeries that help patients, they must have surgical lights installed in the operating rooms. These strong yet energy-efficient lights do not produce heat and will last for long periods without dying out. It is normal to see a handful of different surgical light fixtures in an operating room before surgery.
