Why Arthroscopy Might Be the Answer to Your Arthritis

About 55 million Americans have doctor-diagnosed arthritis, and millions more may have symptoms that haven’t yet been diagnosed. Arthritis is a degenerative disease that worsens over time, especially when medical treatment is delayed.

Fortunately, some treatments can help relieve painful joint symptoms and even slow the progression of the disease. Many patients with arthritis in their feet and ankles find relief through a state-of-the-art technique called joint arthroscopy.

At Forward Foot & Ankle, our team helps patients relieve stiff ankles and other arthritis symptoms using therapies tailored to each individual’s unique needs, including arthroscopy and other therapies. In this post, learn how arthroscopy helps relieve arthritis and when we typically recommend it.

Arthroscopy: Understanding the basics

Arthroscopy means “the study of joints.” Arthroscopic surgery uses techniques developed specifically for diagnosing and treating joint problems, including arthritis, an extremely common cause of joint pain and stiffness.

Arthritis damages the joint’s surface, resulting in increased friction every time the joint is moved. Over time, the damage worsens, leading to increased friction and more pain. Arthroscopy uses special techniques to smooth the joint surface, remove debris, and repair joint damage. 

The arthroscopy procedure

During arthroscopic surgery, your doctor makes 2-3 small incisions over the joint, then inserts a special instrument called an arthroscope. This instrument is equipped with a tiny bright light and camera that allows the doctor to evaluate the inside of your joint using real-time video.

Slender and flexible, the arthroscope provides magnified images of the joint surfaces and the tendons, muscles, and ligaments surrounding it. These images allow your doctor to diagnose arthritis, evaluate the extent of the disease, and perform treatment to ease your symptoms.

Benefits of arthroscopy

Arthroscopy is used in many areas of surgery, and for arthritis treatment, it offers multiple benefits.

It’s minimally invasive

Minimally invasive surgery techniques typically cause less tissue trauma and less bleeding, which means less pain during recovery, along with a faster healing process. Faster healing helps you recover joint function more quickly so you can return to your regular activities.

It’s highly precise

The special instruments used in arthroscopy procedures allow our doctors to provide precise, accurate treatment focused squarely on improving joint health. By directly visualizing the joint’s interior structures, our team can provide target therapy designed to repair defects, improve joint function, and potentially slow disease progression.

It works well with other therapies

Because it’s minimally invasive, arthroscopy also works well with treatments like physical therapy and activity modifications. This benefit enables our team to create individualized treatment plans focusing on your unique goals and needs.

Arthroscopy candidates

While arthroscopy can provide long-term relief for many types of arthritis, it’s not always the best choice. Our team typically recommends it when more conservative therapies, like medication and physical therapy, fail to provide long-term, meaningful relief. 

We may also recommend it for patients who lead active lives and those with symptoms that interfere with mobility and everyday activities.

Find relief for your arthritis symptoms

Arthroscopy is a safe, effective method for relieving chronic arthritis symptoms that don’t improve with conservative, nonsurgical treatments. To find out if it’s a good choice for your arthritis pain, request an appointment online or over the phone with the Forward Foot & Ankle team in Midtown Manhattan and Staten Island, New York, today.