[The importance of surgical arthroscopy for a small trauma surgery specialty department]

The introduction of operative arthroscopy as a treatment option for a wide spectrum of trauma and orthopaedic complaints in a small group of in-patients has led to changes in operative procedures. With knee-joint injuries, any operative procedure can be precisely planned and is often carried out in two steps. Anterior displacement of the tibial tuberosity and other repair procedures for cartilage lesions have now largely given way to arthroscopic treatment. Arthroscopic diagnosis is superior in accuracy to clinical/apparative diagnosis and reveals many additional findings that can also be treated immediately. In our group of patients the high number of degenerative lesions often combined with synovial disorders was striking.