White sponges and surgical wound illumination

A study has been made of the effect of glare in the surgeon's field of vision from reflected light associated with white surgical sponges. Reflected light increases by as much as 226% with the use of white sponges. Standardized measurements indicate that this glare reduces visual acuity, darkens colour interpretation and fatigues the surgeon. A suggested solution is to slightly darken the colour of surgical sponges.