ArthroscopyWhat is arthroscopic surgery?
Arthroscopic surgery is a common orthopedic procedure that is used to diagnose and treat problems in joints. The word “arthroscopy” comes from two Greek words: ‘arthro,’ meaning “joint,” and ‘scope,’ meaning “look.” Simply put, arthroscopic surgery is a means to look inside a joint. But arthroscopy is much more than that! What parts of the body can undergo arthroscopic surgery? Arthroscopic surgery is most commonly performed on the knee and shoulder joints. Less commonly arthroscoped joints include the wrist, elbow, ankle and hip. The reason the knee and shoulder are the most commonly arthroscoped joints is that they are large enough to manipulate the instruments around, and they are amenable to arthroscopic surgery treatments. Technically speaking, any joint can be arthroscoped. However, the practicality and the instrumentation available limit our ability to arthroscope every joint for all types of problems. The most common arthroscopic procedures include repairing cartilage and menis
