Our Services / Arthroscopic Surgery

What is arthroscopic surgery?

Arthroscopic surgery is a minimally invasive procedure for accessing your joints. Dr. Ellsworth makes a small cut on or near the joint and passes an arthroscope through the incision. An arthroscope is a flexible tube used for joint surgery. It has a tiny camera, light, and magnifying lens at its tip.

The camera sends images to Dr. Ellsworth’s monitor from inside your joint to a monitor in the operating room. He uses these clear, magnified images to assess the joint’s condition. Where needed, he can make repairs to the joint using additional arthroscopic instruments.

Dr. Ellsworth uses arthroscopic surgery because it has some significant advantages for patients.

What advantages does arthroscopic surgery offer?

Arthroscopic surgery offers considerable advantages over traditional open surgery. With open surgery, the surgeon makes a large cut through layers of muscle to access and view the joint. Arthroscopic surgery uses much smaller incisions, so there’s far less tissue damage. As a result, you benefit from:

• Lower risk of complications
• Less bleeding
• Reduced risk of infection
• Less pain after surgery
• Quicker recovery
• Minimal scarring

Dr. Ellsworth can do most arthroscopic surgeries on an outpatient basis. That means you don’t have to stay overnight in the hospital.

Arthroscopic surgery is now more common than open surgery. But there are times when Dr. Ellsworth will use the open approach if it’s better for the patient.

Why would I need arthroscopic surgery?

Dr. Ellsworth might recommend arthroscopy if diagnostic imaging procedures don’t show the area in enough detail. X-rays, an MRI, or a CT scan can provide invaluable information. But sometimes, the only way Dr. Ellsworth can assess a joint properly is to see it first-hand.

In addition to making a detailed evaluation of the joint, Dr. Ellsworth can often make repairs during arthroscopy. He can remove bone or cartilage fragments and soft tissues that are too severely damaged to repair and stitch tears in the soft tissues.

Dr. Ellsworth uses arthroscopic surgery to do more complex procedures as well. He might reconstruct a severely torn tendon or ligament using a graft — a piece of tendon from elsewhere in your body or a donor. He can combine arthroscopic surgery with open surgery for procedures like joint replacements.

Call the Kansas City Orthopedic Alliance today or book an appointment online to learn more about arthroscopic surgery and how it can benefit you.