Shoulder arthroscopy is a diagnostic and therapeutic surgical technique for lesions affecting the shoulder joint. As it is a semi-invasive technique with small incisions in the skin, it requires greater anatomical knowledge on the part of the specialist in Traumatology in order not to injure nervous or vascular structures.
A system of cannulas of approximately 0.4 cm in diameter is used to house an optical camera known as an arthroscope. This arthroscope is aided by a cold light source so as not to injure the tissues to be treated and whose images are projected on a monitor from where all the surgical gestures are controlled.
This surgical technique is recommended for all those patients who, due to the severity of the injury, require it urgently or, also, for those in whom conservative treatment or rehabilitation has failed. These are patients who suffer from nocturnal pain that prevents habitual rest or who present functional impotence of the extremity in activities of daily living such as dressing, grooming, driving and low-level sports, among others.
Among the pathologies of consultation are: recurrent shoulder instability, rotator cuff tear, Slap lesion in biceps, calcific tendinitis, subacromial conflict, AC arthropathy, AC dislocation, adhesive capsulitis, chondrocalcinosis or rheumatoid arthritis.
What are the risks involved in shoulder arthroscopy?
The risks and complications that can be associated with shoulder arthroscopy can be classified into three categories:
- Anesthetics: will be assessed by specialists in this section to decide the best anesthetic technique, not differing from other surgical processes and being a surgery of not very long duration.
- Per-operative: the surgeon must have the appropriate knowledge and skills to avoid and solve these complications during surgery.
- Postoperative: postoperative complications are those typical of any joint surgery. For example: infection, which is very rare in arthroscopic surgery; and joint stiffness or residual pain. For the latter, it is very important to follow an appropriate exercise regimen and to start doing it immediately upon discharge from the hospital.
Shoulder arthroscopy: recovery
Recovery from shoulder arthroscopy depends on the lesions to be treated and the activity to be performed by the patient. Therefore, we always work with personalized protocols.
The recovery period varies between one or two weeks in surgeries without cuff injuries, up to two and three months if the rotator cuff has been repaired. It can even be a period of 4 to 6 months in the case of throwing or contact athletes.
Once the sutures are removed, all patients are able to perform activities such as eating or toileting after seven to ten days despite wearing an immobilizing bandage.