Arthroscopic shoulder surgery.

Arthroscopy has proven to be a very important orthopaedic tool for treatment of the knee and other joints. Since 1972, we have used the arthroscope to examine the interior of shoulder joints. We prefer to perform arthroscopy while the patient is under general anaesthesia, as local anaesthetic may result in unnecessary patient discomfort and there can be difficulty in distracting and rotating the humerus. Arthroscopic operative procedures include the inspection of a torn glenoid labrum and certain lesions of the biceps tendon, viewing a torn rotator cuff, locating loose bodies in the shoulder, surgery for recurrent dislocations, and division of the coracoacromial ligament.