What is Knee Arthroscopy?

Knee Arthroscopy is a surgical procedure, which uses a tiny camera probe in helping to repair the knee. This is usually an alternative to open surgery and is considered to be less invasive than traditional surgery. 

Knee Arthroscopy is used to repair injuries to tissues such as ligaments, cartilage or bone within the knee joint area.

The surgery is conduced with the aid of an arthroscope, which is a tiny instrument guided by a lighted scope attached to a television monitor. This way, the doctors will be able to magnify the image of the patient’s inside, to make more accurate results.   

For more information on how Knee Arthroscopy is performed, please view THIS VIDEO. 

Common Knee Problems

There are many common knee problems that may need to be fixed by surgical or non-surgical methods. Some of these includes torn meniscal cartilage, loose fragments of bones or cartilagesm condromalacia, inflammation of the synovial membrane such as arthritis, instability of the kneecap, small pieces of broken cartilage in the knee joint, removal of Baker’s cyst, torn ligaments or anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments.

Candidates for Knee Arthroscopy

• Age range between 20 to 60

• Persistent pain of the knees

• Medication has no effect of knee benefits

• Knee support not working

• Physical therapy have no benefits

Benefits with Knee Arthroscopy

• Less anaesthetic
• Less cutting
• Less recovery time

Risk of Knee Arthroscopy

The risks of arthroscopic surgery are much less than open surgery. However, that does not mean that they are non-existant. Most risks of arthroscopic surgery are related to injury at the time of the actual surgery. Arteries, nerves and veins may be injured, which can result in discomfort, leg weakness or decreased sensation. These injuries are very rare though. Below is a list of the most common risks with knee arthroscopy: 

• Breathing problems

• Allergic reactions to medicine

• Bleeding

• Infection

• Bleeding of knee joints

• Blood clot

• Damage to ligaments in the knee

• Damage to cartilage of the knee

• Damage to meniscus in the knee

• Knee stiffness

• Injury of blood vessels or nerves