Knee Arthroscopy

Knee Arthroscopy services offered in Nashville and Murfreesboro, TN

Knee arthroscopy enables surgeons to evaluate and treat problems in your knees without needing to make invasive incisions through the muscles. Fellowship-trained joint replacement surgeon Robert Otto, MD, uses knee arthroscopy to repair the meniscus cartilage and assist with knee replacement surgeries. Dr. Otto is part of the Southern Joint Replacement Institute and has offices in Nashville and Murfreesboro, Tennessee. To benefit from his considerable expertise in knee arthroscopy, call Robert J Otto MD today or book an appointment online.

What is knee arthroscopy?

Knee arthroscopy is a minimally invasive form of surgery that enables Dr. Otto to examine the structures and tissues inside your knee. He can assess the joint and perform certain procedures without having to make large cuts through the soft tissues.

When using arthroscopy, Dr. Otto only needs to make tiny incisions in your knee. They’re just big enough to fit the pencil-sized arthroscopic instruments into the joint. First, he inserts the arthroscope, a slender tube with a light and camera at its tip.

The arthroscope passes through your tissues into the knee joint. The camera sends real-time video of the inside of the joint to a monitor in the treatment room. Dr. Otto moves the arthroscope around in the joint, observing the images on the screen to assess the damage in your knee.

If he needs to perform any repairs or other procedures, Dr. Otto inserts special arthroscopic surgical instruments through additional incisions.

What procedures use knee arthroscopy?

Many kinds of joint repairs are possible using arthroscopic surgery, including:

Ligament reconstruction
Tendon repair or reconstruction
Removing or repairing a torn meniscus
Cartilage transplantation
Bone spur removal
Inflamed synovial tissue removal
Loose bone and cartilage fragment removal
Cleaning infected tissues

Dr. Otto also uses arthroscopic techniques to assist with some knee replacement surgeries, such as removing scar tissue.

What are the advantages of knee arthroscopy?

Minimally invasive knee arthroscopy causes significantly less trauma to the muscles and other tissues in your knee. This approach offers many benefits compared to open surgery, which involves making large incisions in the knee.

If you’re able to have knee arthroscopy rather than open surgery, you’ll enjoy advantages that include:

Less blood loss
Reduced risk of infection
Less post-surgery pain
Minimal scarring
Faster healing
Same-day surgery

In most instances, patients go home the same day as their knee arthroscopy procedure. When you leave, Dr. Otto or a member of his team will give you instructions on caring for your knee and make sure you can use any assistive devices like crutches that you might need.

With physical therapy or a prescribed exercise program (depending on your needs), you should recover quickly from your knee arthroscopy procedure.

To find out how you could benefit from expert knee arthroscopy, call Robert J Otto MD today and schedule a consultation or book an appointment online.