Joint Scopes

Joint scopes

The medical term for a joint scope is an Arthroscopy. A joint scope is a minimally invasive procedure that will allow an AVALA Ortho physician to diagnose and treat pain a patient may feel in a specific joint of the body.

Conditions
An Arthoscopy procedure can be done on any of the joints of the body including the wrist, elbow, shoulder, hip, knee or ankle.

Common conditions that can be treated with a scope procedure are:
- Loose bone fragments
- Damaged or torn cartilage
- Inflamed joint linings
- Torn ligaments
- Scarring within joints

A Scope Procedure

A scope procedure requires a very small incision and the use of a camera and very small instruments to help an AVALA physician visualize the anatomy of the joint.

Procedure

Incision

A small incision is made to the joint.

Visualization

A narrow tube with a fiber-optic camera is placed inside the joint. The camera will feed images back to a monitor in the OR, for a physician to visualize the anatomy of your joint in real time.

Tissue Repair

In some cases, tissue or joint damage can be fixed in the scope procedure. This may require your physician to make additional incisions to insert pencil-thin instruments into the joint to treat the damage.

Timing

A scope procedure does not usually take very long. The timing of the procedure may depend on the joint the physician is operating on, and the damage that may need to be corrected.

Recovery Time

A scope procedure can generally be performed on an out-patient basis. This means, after your procedure has ended, you will be taken to a room to recover for a few hours before being discharged on the same day as your procedure.