If your procedure requires general anesthesia, an anesthesiologist gives you the anesthetic through a vein intravenously or through a mask, from which you inhale the anesthetic as a gas. If a regional anesthetic is used, only a section of your body is numb and you remain conscious.

An orthopedic surgeon specializing in bone, muscle and joint surgery performs the procedure. The surgeon cuts a small incision into your skin. He or she then inserts the arthroscope, which is about the width of a pencil. The joint is filled with saline solution to provide a better view. A beam of light and a small video camera with a magnifying lens are attached to the arthroscope and connected to a monitor so that the surgeon can see the magnified image of the joint. If your joint needs repair, the surgeon may insert surgical instruments through additional small incisions made around the joint. When the surgery is complete, your surgeon removes the arthroscope and any other instruments and flushes the joint with a saline solution. The surgeon may also inject local anesthetics into the joint to reduce pain. The incisions may be closed with stitches, if necessary.

What can you expect during arthroscopy?

During the procedure, the surgeon disinfects the area around the joint and applies sterile drapes to further prevent infection. He or she may use a pressure band or tourniquet to decrease blood loss and to see the joint better. A simple arthroscopic procedure generally lasts about an hour. Once the surgery is complete, you’re taken to a separate room to recover for a few hours before going home. Your doctor may give you medication to relieve pain and inflammation. After you go home, you’ll need to wrap, rest, ice and elevate the joint for several days to reduce swelling and pain.

Depending on which joint required the procedure, you may need to temporarily use splints, slings or crutches for comfort and protection. You may also have stitches, or there may be small adhesive strips over the incisions. Your doctor removes these when you return to see him or her for a follow-up visit. Your doctor may suggest a rehabilitation program that includes physical therapy to speed your recovery. Most likely, you can resume daily activities within a few days, but it may take several weeks for the joint to fully recover.

Arthroscopy is a relatively low risk procedure. Complications are rare and occur in less than 1 percent of all surgeries. Possible risks includes bleeding within the joint; blood clot; damage to ligaments, tendons, muscles or cartilage; infection; nerve or blood vessel damage and reaction to general anesthesia.

Arthroscopic surgery is comparatively cheaper in comparison to the traditional open surgery, as the patient is discharged and can return to work almost immediately, and, precious man-hours are not lost. The individual as well as the society in general, benefits from this save. Moreover, the cost of investigations and medications is also lower. In metropolitan cities of India, arthroscopic procedure costs between Rs eight thousands to eighteen thousands, depending upon the severity and complexity of the procedure undertaken. Until recently, this technique was available in a few metropolitan cities only but the situation is changing rapidly and specialists trained in this area are getting available even in other cities.