Several months ago I wrote a letter regarding severe drift problems related to the diode laser on the our FacsCalibur, which was initially equipped with one of the newer Diode lasers that replaced the old "lipstick" lasers that were no longer being manufactured. This newer laser has a circuit board containing a fan attached to the back of the laser. Following the initial set-up of the machine, we began to have problems with drifting CV and compensation relating to FL4. Continual realignment of the laser did not correct the problem, and replacement of the laser with another identical unit also did not correct the problem. I posted a question to this list at that time and received a number of kind replies that indicated a variable experience with the stability of FL4 in the new caliburs. This problem continued for a year despite the expenditure by BD of many tech hours working with instrument. Recently, BD has released a new diode laser that resembles the old "lipstick" laser from the days of yore and placed one in our machine. After one additional service call in which the laser drifted slightly, the problem has disappeared and the instrument has been rock solid ever since. One caveat, after the last service call, BD also replaced the pressure regulator, even though there was no real indication that the old one was malfunctioning, so I cannot exclude the possibility that the regulator also played a role. However, my provisional conclusion is that the problem was the old Tec laser and that the new design solved the problem. II would also like to add that BD was responsive to our problems, usually providing tech support on site at the drop of a hat. Bottom line: If you have one of the new style lasers, and everything is stable, don't mess with it. But if you are having stability problems, you should consider replacement of the diode laser with the new design. James F. George, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Surgery University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, Alabama 35294-0007 jgeorge@uab.edu
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