Arthroscopy, or arthroscopic surgery, is a minimally-invasive orthopedic surgical procedure utilized by Beverly Hills orthopedic surgeon Steven W. Meier, M.D. Arthroscopic shoulder surgery can be used to fully evaluate and treat structural injuries and chronic conditions of the shoulder joint.

Arthroscopic procedures are commonly used to treat shoulder injuries and conditions because they are less invasive, require less heal time, cause less blood loss, and are generally less painful than open surgical techniques. Shoulder arthroscopy can be used to treat torn cartilage, perform ligament or tendon reconstruction, and trim damaged tissue causing pain.

Common Shoulder Procedures

Dr. Meier routinely performs arthroscopic surgery to treat shoulder injuries. He can treat the following injuries and chronic conditions through arthroscopy:

• Shoulder instability
• Rotator cuff tears
• AC joint separation
• Shoulder dislocation
• Cartilage tears
• Arthritis and shoulder joint degeneration
• Shoulder capsule release
• Shoulder decompression

Key Instruments in Arthroscopy

The most important innovation used in arthroscopic surgery is the arthroscope. The word arthroscope, which comes from the Greek language, and is translated to mean “view joint”, is a small, fiber-optic device that has a camera lens and a light attached at the end. The arthroscope acts as the eyes of the surgeon, and the image from the camera is displayed on a video monitor inside of the operating room that the surgeon uses while performing surgery. Without this little tool, minimally invasive surgery would not be possible as we know it.

In order to get the arthroscope into the shoulder joint, a small incision is made into the area around the joint. The patient is under general anesthesia and asleep during the procedure. The arthroscope is inserted into that incision, or portal, and it provides the doctor with video images of the inside of the shoulder joint. Another incision, or two, is made so that other small surgical instruments can also access the inside of the shoulder joint and perform the necessary repairs to damaged tissue.

Benefits of Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery

One of the major benefits to arthroscopic surgery is that it can be performed on many joints in the human body. The most common joints, however, are the knee, shoulder, elbow, wrist, ankle, and hip.

One of the major reasons that minimally invasive procedures are preferable to open procedures is decreased trauma to the connective tissues of the body. Since the joint does not have to be opened up fully during arthroscopy, the body is less traumatized than it would have been if a large incision were made into the area into and around the shoulder joint. This typically gives the following benefits:

• Reduced recovery time
• Smaller scars
• Less pain after the procedure
• Smaller risk of complications
• Increased success rate

These quicker recovery times benefit athletes and athletically active people greatly. The smaller recovery times and fewer complications result in less time lost doing the things that they love to do.

When faced with the option of open surgery and arthroscopic surgery, the minimally invasive option should be the best choice, in terms of orthopedic medicine, if at all possible.

Contact a Beverly Hills Arthroscopic Surgeon

Steven W. Meier, M.D. is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with fellowship training in sports medicine and arthroscopic surgery. He received his Doctor of Medicine from the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, and completed his fellowship at University of California, San Diego for Sports Medicine and Arthroscopic Surgery.

Dr. Meier is a leader in his field in the surgical treatment of shoulder conditions and knee conditions, as well as arthroscopic surgical techniques. He is highly qualified as an arthroscopic shoulder surgeon. To find out more, contact him at (310) 777-7845 to speak with an experienced Beverly Hills orthopedic surgeon.

Next, learn about minimally-invasive arthroscopic knee surgeries.