Arthroscopy, less aggressive technique to operate joint
Written by:An arthroscopy is a surgical technique consisting of operating inside a joint through small holes (called portals). They include, among many other techniques, within the so-called ' minimally invasive surgery ', along with ERCP (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancretography) or neuroendoscopy .
Process
In the preoperative period, before beginning the procedure, the patient is anesthetized -both in a general, regional or local manner-, to avoid any pain.. After this first step, the doctor disinfects the outside of the joint on which it will be performed and will cover the area with a surgical sheet.
The arthroscopies themselves are made by introducing (through one of the portals) into the joint a cannula that incorporates a camera and a light and operating through the other holes. Once finished, the used instruments are removed and the incisions are closed with stitches.
Although at the beginning they were only performed on the knee, given their condition of greater articulation in the human body, they can now be performed on any joint of the body, although the most frequent are shoulder, hip and shoulder arthroscopy. of knee .
For postoperative treatment, the patient is recommended to rest the joint that has been operated on and elevate it , as well as apply ice on it. It will be necessary to make a bandage on the area to immobilize it and prevent it from getting wet (both the bandage and the wound).
The advantages of arthroscopy
The results obtained from it are very positive. Almost any articular pathology can be treated by arthroscopy (even some fractures) with the advantage of being not very aggressive for the patient, accelerating the hospital discharge and its recovery and incorporation into social life. In addition, the small size of the instruments used to make the incisions makes the scars less important and minimizes the side effects of this type of surgery.
