Arthroscopy

Arthroscopy is a minimally invasive surgical procedure using a teloscope to visualize, diagnose, and treat problems in a joint. The procedure is less invasive than traditional, open surgery, and recovery is generally less extensive.

During an arthroscopic procedure, a fiber optic camera attached to a teloscope is inserted into the joint through a small incision. The image from the camera is then conveyed to a television monitor, allowing the surgeon to visualize the joint space. Several other accessory incisions may be made to visualize other parts of the joint or to insert specially designed surgical instruments to treat the diagnosed condition.

Although arthroscopy can be used to explore any major joint, in veterinary medicine, it is most commonly utilized in the elbow, shoulder, hip, and knee. Conditions that are commonly diagnosed and treated with arthroscopy are elbow dysplasia, hip dysplasia, and ruptures of the cranial cruciate ligament in the knee.