Head mirror

[nina512]

How does one usually get a head mirror?

I will be spending a year in clinic with an ENT attending and he suggested that I get a mirror. However, when I was on an ENT rotation, it seemed like the residents shared the head mirrors (sine the PGY2's mirror was equally beat up looking as the PGY4's).

Is there usually a stash of head mirrors in outpatient ENT clinics or do people usually by their own when starting residency.

Thanks,
Nina

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[resxn]

http://www.anthonyproducts.com/site/product.cfm?id=B9A3F9FB-A8C5-9904-0F38589CAC83BAA6

but if you want my opinion, total waste of money for a student. I used a head mirror all throughout residency because the attendings wanted me to. I use a tiny fiberoptic headlight now which is lighter, less 18th century looking, and with the new LED's just as good.

The theoretical advantage of the head mirror is that it doesn't cast shadows because you're looking directly from the source of the light rather from a slightly offset angle. Sorry, but that advantage is lost on a student who on a 4 wk rotation will just figure out how to use the thing before they rotate off ENT.

Also, I've come to appreciate that casting a shadow is immensely helpful when determining the dimensions of a lesion.

I'm breaking free of the head mirror--but there are some big big fans of it who I'm sure will loathe my opinion.

 

[Pir8DeacDoc]

At my program we use either a fiberoptic headlight or a set of those glasses with a light in the middle. The mirror is a relic from our past. It should go the way of the dinosaur.

 

[neutropeniaboy]

Despite my inclination for technology, I still like the head mirror. I've used the portable headlights, and I've felt that the only ones that rival the head mirror are the Xenon lamps that I've used in the OR. The portable ones are either too dim or too blue.

Of course, every time the lamp attached to the chair had a screw loose or the patient moved too much I've wished I had a self-illuminating light source. Moreover, you can't use your head mirror on the wards.

 

[nina512]

Thanks for the input,

I was able to borrow the spare that is in clinic, just in case the residents forgot theirs.