Amsco surgical lights are recognized as one of the most reliable and well-made line of surgical lights ever made. Amsco manufactured two series of surgical lights that were renowned for their excellent illumination and longevity. The Amsco Polaris series and the Amsco Quantum series surgical lights were industry standards in their respective market tenures.
Amsco Surgical Lights Overview
The Amsco Polaris surgical lights were manufactured and sold from the early 1980’s until the late 1980’s. Their large 22” surgical light head diameter produced 9,000 foot candles of illumination. The system utilized a 33 volt 235 watt tungsten-halogen light bulb. A wall mounted surgical light intensity controlled the intensity of the light output through a rheostat located on the front of each wall intensity controller.
The Amsco Quantum and Quantum SQ240 surgical lights were manufactured and sold from the late 1980’s until after the turn of the century. These lights featured a nominal 10,000 ft candles of illumination using a “cylinder of light” that was a revolutionary concept. The light bulb was a 22 volt 220 watt Quartz bulb. The Amsco Quantum series also boasted a “re-lamping” feature which would automatically electro-mechanically change the bulb to a secondary or “backup” bulb during surgery in the event of a primary bulb failure, resulting in no interruption to the surgery. Options included a focusing feature that was operated by twisting the sterile handle, video camera (either within the surgical light head or on a separate arm) and a video monitor mount. Configurations of these surgical lights also included triple light heads, single light heads and the most popular dual light head. A wall mounted intensity controller was used to adjust the light intensity, much like the Polaris lights before it.
Amsco was purchased in 1996 by the Steris Corporation, so some lights were marketed under the Steris brand, specifically the Quantum SQ240.
Amsco surgical lights are relatively easy for a qualified technician to maintain and provide years of reliable use. Most parts for newer models are readily available from Steris. Many aftermarket parts are still available for even the older surgical lighting systems. Other competitors with similar surgery lights include ALM, Berchtold, Burton, Medical Illumination and Skytron.