Arthroscopy

Arthroscopy is a “keyhole” operation that is used to look inside and treat joints, i.e. knee joint. The word arthroscopy comes from two Greek words, “arthro” ( joint) and “skopein” (to look). The term arthroscopy means “ to look within the joint”.

It is performed through a very small incision in the skin, using a narrow telescope, attached to a camera. Keyhole surgery and is less painful, carries less risk of infection, and enables people to recover more quickly.

An Arthroscopy can be performed on shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees or ankles.

Why Arthroscopy?

An arthroscopy may be used to investigate knee problems, treat conditions such as inflammation, take small samples of tissue or repair damage to tissues and cartilage. The procedures can be done as a day case – without the need for an overnight stay in hospital.

Disease and injuries can damage bones, cartilage, ligaments, muscles, and tendons. Some of the most common conditions found during an arthroscopic examination of the joints are:

• torn or abnormal cartilage 
• torn ligaments 
• loose fragments of bone or cartilage
• damaged joint surfaces 
• inflammation of the joint lining (synovium) in knee, shoulder, elbow, wrist or ankle
• Meniscal tears
• misaligned bones ( such as the kneecap)

The knee is, by far, the most common joint examined. Others include the shoulder, elbow, ankle, hip, and wrist. As advances are made by engineers in electronic technology and new surgical techniques are developed by orthopedic surgeons, more conditions can be treated through arthroscopic procedures.

Choosing An Arthroscopy

Not everyone who has knee problems will need to have an arthroscopy. In many cases, the problem can be diagnosed by non-surgical methods such as MRI ( magnetic resonance imaging) and some problems can be treated using physiotherapy.