Arthroscopy

If you have chronic joint pain that’s not treatable with medications or other conservative therapies, you may be a candidate for arthroscopy. The experienced orthopedic surgeons at North Point Orthopaedics offer minimally invasive arthroscopy procedures to diagnose and treat painful joint conditions, including arthritis, fractures, and soft tissue tears. They also provide physical therapy services on-site to help restore your mobility, so you can quickly get back to a physically active life. Call the office in Munster or Crown Point, Indiana, today or book an appointment online to determine if arthroscopy is a treatment option for you. 

What is arthroscopy?

Arthroscopy is a minimally invasive method to diagnose and treat diseases and injuries of a joint.

During arthroscopy, your North Point Orthopaedics surgeon makes a small incision over your joint. Through this incision, they insert a narrow tube that has an attached camera. The camera sends real-time images of the inner structures of your joint to an external monitor.

The physicians view the monitor as they move the camera inside your joint to identify fractures, inflammation, and other causes of persistent joint pain or disability.

This minimally invasive technique minimizes trauma to surrounding tissue, so you heal faster and with less pain.

Why would I need arthroscopy?

North Point Orthopaedics offers arthroscopy procedures to address painful injuries or conditions like osteoarthritis that affect your joint health and mobility.

The surgeons can use arthroscopy to diagnose and treat conditions involving your:

• Hips
• Feet
• Ankles
• Knees
• Wrists
• Elbows
• Shoulders

You might need arthroscopy if you have unexplained pain or loss of range of motion in your joint, but the root cause isn’t identifiable through X-rays or other diagnostic imaging tests.

You may also be a candidate for treatment with arthroscopy if medications, regenerative therapies like platelet-rich plasma (PRP injections), and other nonsurgical methods can’t relieve your pain or improve your mobility. 

Using arthroscopic techniques, the orthopedic surgeons can repair soft tissue damage and remove fragments of bone without damaging surrounding tissues.

How long does it take to recover from arthroscopy?

Many people are able to go home the same day as their arthroscopic procedure. The North Point Orthopaedics surgeons provide complete aftercare instructions to lower your risk for infection and other postsurgical complications.

You should get plenty of rest and keep the joint elevated for several days to minimize swelling. Because arthroscopy requires only small incisions to access your joint, you can expect to heal faster than you might after open surgery.

Following arthroscopy, you may benefit from the physical therapy services available at North Point Orthopaedics. The exercises you learn help strengthen the muscles that support your joint to give you greater joint flexibility.

To learn more about the benefits of minimally invasive arthroscopy, call the North Point Orthopaedics office nearest you today or book an appointment online.