When is knee arthroscopy indicated?

The knee is vulnerable to a variety of injuries. Knee arthroscopy may be indicated if you are experiencing knee pain, to help the doctor accurately diagnose you. The minimally invasive procedure is used to confirm the source of knee pain and treat the problem.

Arthroscopic knee surgery may also be indicated to diagnose and treat knee injuries such as:

• Torn anterior or post cruciate ligaments
• Torn knee cartilage
• Loose fragments of bone or cartilage
• Knee sepsis, a knee infection
• Baker’s cyst
• Fractures in the knee bones
• Kneecap (patella) problems
• Inflammation of the synovial membrane, the lining of the surface of the joint

What does knee arthroscopy entail?

Dr Steenkamp will advise you on how to prepare for knee arthroscopy prior to your surgery. On the day of the procedure, you will be under either local anaesthetic to numb your knee, regional anaesthetic to numb you from your waist down or general anaesthetic to make you sleep throughout the procedure.

Once you are under anaesthetic, Dr Steenkamp will make a few small incisions in your knee and pump in saline to expand the area. This will allow the orthopaedic surgeon to see inside the knee joint and give him enough room to perform the procedure. An arthroscope will be passed through one of the incisions to look around your knee joint and help the orthopaedic surgeon locate an injury or infection. Tiny surgical tools will then be inserted through the other incisions to treat the problem. When the knee arthroscopy is complete, the saline will be drained from your knee, and the incisions will be stitched closed.