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H E A D L I G H T S
They must chose between 2 main bulb types: fiber-optic xenon and light-emitting diodes. The early generation of LEDs couldn't match the performance of xenon alternatives, but evolving technology has increased the light intensity of these long-lasting, cooler bulbs. Based on my experience, LEDs maintain their intensity with no perceivable drop off in brightness as compared with xenon bulbs. Why? Perhaps because the brightness of xenon headlights depends on the quality of the fiber-optic cable that connects the headsets to a light source. Fiber-optic bundles within the cable can break over time, causing the light to gradually lose intensity.
I prefer to keep the aperture of our LED headlights fully open during spine surgeries to provide the brightest light across the entire surgical field. Closing the aperture on LED models makes the light more intense, but it doesn't fill the surgeon's field of vision. Closing the aperture on a xenon bulb, on the other hand, will focus the light with laser-like precision, which might be preferred by ENT docs demanding a high level of magnification and intense light.
2 Natural coloration
Bulbs provide light in varying degrees Kelvin, which impacts the light's perceived color. The higher the Kelvin rating, the whiter the light and the more realistic the color it provides. Incandescent bulbs, for example, produce light at 2,700°K. New xenon bulbs provide about 3,000°K and fade over time to about 2,700°K. LEDs provide light with a bluer hue at 3,000°K to 4,000°K-plus.
Pay attention to Kelvin ratings when reviewing marketing literature, but all your surgeons will care about is how the light's color renders tissues, nerves and blood vessels so they can differentiate the delicate anatomy. In my head-to-head comparison of xenon bulbs and LEDs, the
