Knee arthroscopy is considered for surgical management of knee pain after conservative measures have resulted in little improvement in symptoms. You and your healthcare provider will decide on the specific procedure and schedule it at a hospital or outpatient surgical center in advance.
Make sure to give yourself plenty of time to arrive at the hospital by the designated time in preparation for your scheduled surgery, including parking, finding the surgery suite, and filling out all necessary paperwork.
On the day of your knee arthroscopy, you will be taken to a pre-operative room and asked to change into a gown. You will undergo a brief physical examination and answer questions about your medical history from the surgical team.
You will then be taken into the operating room equipped with an operating table and several screens, monitors, and medical technology for assessing your status before, during, and after the operation.
The surgical team will assist you onto the operating table and you will be given anesthesia medication depending on what type is determined appropriate by your surgeon. The type of anesthesia used during your knee arthroscopy will be one (or a combination) of the following:
Local anesthesia: Anesthesia can be injected into the knee joint to numb only the area for the procedure. With local anesthesia, you will be awake for the procedure. You may feel a little pressure in the knee but should not feel any pain due to the numbing agents in the anesthesia.
Regional anesthesia: Anesthesia is injected into the lower back or leg to numb your body from the waist or leg down. With regional anesthesia, you may be awake for the procedure but should not feel any pain.
General anesthesia: Anesthesia is delivered intravenously through an IV in either your arm or hand to put you to sleep for the operation.
In some cases, if you receive local or regional anesthesia, you may be awake for the procedure and may be able to watch the operation on a monitor that will display an image from the inside of your knee from the arthroscope camera. In other cases, this type of anesthesia is combined with sedation or general anesthesia so that you may be asleep during the procedure.
