Here, the surgeon makes a small incision in the patient’s skin and inserts pencil-sized instruments containing a lighting system and tiny lens to view the structure inside the joint. The various types of arthroscopy are, ankle, hip, elbow, shoulder, wrist and knee arthroscopy.

Arthroscopic diagnosis helps determine if the patient needs to undergo replacement surgeries, as per his/her condition. They may be any of the following:

• Total knee arthroplasty
• Total hip arthroplasty
• Total joint arthroplasty

Arthroscopy normally takes about 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on the type of procedure carried out.
During this procedure, a small incision is made on the problem joint, to insert the arthroscope. Through a miniature video camera attached to the arthroscope, the surgeon can see the joint interior (ligaments, cartilage etc.) on a television screen kept in the operation room. During examination, the surgeon may be able to repair any damaged areas or remove any unwanted tissue using tiny surgical instruments.

After arthroscopy, healing may take few weeks and the surgeon monitors patient progress in follow-up visits and addresses concerns. A patient is able to walk in 1-2 weeks and resume regular activities soon after. Strenuous physical activities like heavy lifting, sports etc., may be undertaken around six weeks post-surgery.

At times, during arthroscopy, the surgeon may find out that the joint problem cannot be treated with arthroscopy alone. Hence, the extensive replacement surgery on the specific joint may be performed while a patient is still anesthetized, or on a later date after discussing the findings.