Shoulder Arthroscopy
Shoulder arthroscopy is a surgical procedure that we performs to assess the cause of pain in your shoulder joint and repair any damaged tissues.
An arthroscope is a flexible tube with a miniaturized camera at the end that passes through a small incision in your skin. Arthroscopy is a less invasive form of surgery that avoids the need for making large incisions.
Why might I need shoulder arthroscopy?
We may recommend shoulder arthroscopy if you have conditions such as:
- Torn shoulder ligaments
- Damaged cartilage
- Shoulder instability
- Torn biceps tendon
- Tendinitis
- Torn rotator cuff
- Bone spurs
- Inflammation of the joint lining
- Arthritis
- Shoulder impingement syndrome
We only recommend shoulder arthroscopy if other forms of treatment aren’t yielding results, or in cases where surgery is the best option.
What happens during the shoulder arthroscopy procedure?
To prepare for shoulder arthroscopy, you receive either a general anesthetic or local anesthesia in your shoulder, combined with a sedative to keep you relaxed and sleepy. Either way, you won’t feel any pain during the operation.
We make a small incision in your shoulder and insert the arthroscope. We can see the internal tissues of your shoulder via a monitor that receives a feed from the camera on the end of the arthroscope.
The images on the screen enable him to determine where repairs are necessary. We make more small incisions to accommodate specially designed instruments we use to carry out the repairs.
How is damaged tissue repaired during shoulder arthroscopy?
There are a variety of techniques we can use to repair damaged tissues, including:
- Cleaning out irreparably damaged tissues
- Reattaching tendons with sutures or rivets
- Shaving bone spurs
- Cutting a ligament
- Repairing tears in muscles and soft tissues
When the repairs are complete, we close the incisions with stitches and cover them with a dressing to keep the wound clean and protected.
After the initial recovery period, we arrange physical therapy to rebuild strength and mobility in the affected shoulder.
