Knee arthroscopy (Arthroscopy of the knee (keyhole knee surgery))

What is a knee arthroscopy?

A knee arthroscopy is keyhole surgery in which a surgeon passes a thin camera (an arthroscope) into the knee through small cuts to see inside the joint, and sometimes to treat a problem at the same time.

It can be used to look at and treat certain mechanical problems, such as a torn piece of cartilage (meniscus) that is catching or locking the knee, a loose fragment of bone or cartilage, or some ligament and cartilage injuries.

Importantly, the evidence shows that knee arthroscopy does not help wear-and-tear arthritis (osteoarthritis) or most age-related (degenerative) meniscal tears. For these, UK guidance recommends against it, because a 'washout' or trimming of worn cartilage is no better than non-surgical care and carries the risks of an operation.

So this is a useful operation for the right, specific problem — but not a general treatment for knee pain, and not a substitute for exercise, weight management and physiotherapy in arthritis.

Types & techniques

There isn't one single operation. The right approach depends on you — which is something to discuss with your surgeon.

Arthroscopy versus conservative care for wear-related knee pain

For arthritis and most age-related tears, guidance favours exercise and physiotherapy over surgery.

Preparing for your surgery

• Be clear on the exact diagnosis and why arthroscopy is being suggested for it, not just 'knee pain'.
• Ask whether your scan shows a problem that surgery actually helps, or mainly wear and tear.
• Ask whether physiotherapy and other non-surgical treatment have been tried or should come first.
• Tell the team about all your health conditions and medicines, including blood thinners.
• Follow fasting instructions if you are having a general anaesthetic.
• Arrange a lift home and someone to stay with you for the first 24 hours after sedation or anaesthetic.
• Plan a few days of lighter activity and have crutches ready if advised.

What happens

Knee arthroscopy is usually done under a general anaesthetic (asleep), and sometimes under a spinal anaesthetic. Your anaesthetist will discuss the best choice for you.

The surgeon makes two or more small cuts around the knee and passes in a thin camera and fine instruments. Sterile fluid is used to fill the joint so the surgeon can see clearly. They examine the joint and, if appropriate, trim a torn meniscus, remove a loose fragment, or treat a cartilage or ligament problem. The operation usually takes around 30 to 60 minutes.

The small cuts are closed with stitches or strips and a dressing is applied. Most people go home the same day once they have recovered from the anaesthetic and can move about safely.

Is this operation right for me?

A good consultation should explore whether it's the right choice for you now — including reasons to wait or consider something else.

Before you decide

Use this as a shared-decision checklist. The aim is not just “can this be done?”, but whether it is right for you, now, with the risks and alternatives clearly understood.

Anaesthetic choices

The safest option depends on the operation, your health, the facility and your surgeon/anaesthetist. Ask what is planned and why.

The biggest issue for many people is not a surgical complication but having the operation at all when the problem is wear-and-tear arthritis or an age-related meniscal tear, where it is unlikely to help. Removing meniscus cartilage can also slightly raise the long-term risk of arthritis. Ask your surgeon exactly what they expect to find and treat, and what the realistic chance of benefit is.

Published figures to discuss

Serious complications from knee arthroscopy itself are uncommon, but the most important 'risk' is having surgery that does not help. For osteoarthritis and age-related meniscal tears, high-quality trials show no clinically meaningful benefit over non-surgical care. Figures vary with the exact procedure and patient.

These are literature figures, not a personalised prediction. Your own risks and likely benefits depend on your circumstances, your health, and how your care is carried out and followed up.

Recovery — what to expect, and when

Because the cuts are small, recovery is often quicker than open surgery — but it is still surgery, and how much it helps depends on the diagnosis. Swelling can take a few weeks to settle, and a meniscal repair needs a more careful, slower recovery than a simple trim.

• Swelling and mild discomfort around the knee for a week or two
• Some stiffness that eases with gentle exercises
• Needing crutches briefly and resting the leg
• Small wounds that heal over a couple of weeks
• Gradual rather than instant improvement

Aftercare

• Rest and elevate the leg, and use ice as advised to reduce swelling.
• Keep the small wounds clean and dry until healed.
• Do the movement and strengthening exercises your physiotherapist recommends.
• Use crutches and follow weight-bearing advice, especially after a meniscal repair.
• Avoid driving until you can control the car safely and are off strong painkillers.
• Build activity back up gradually rather than rushing into sport.
• Keep any follow-up appointment to review the findings and plan.

• Lift home and someone to stay overnight arranged
• Ice packs and a way to elevate the leg ready
• Crutches available if advised
• Comfortable, loose clothing for the dressing
• A few days of lighter activity planned
• Clinic and out-of-hours contact numbers saved

Scars and how they heal

You will have two or more small scars around the knee, usually under a centimetre each. These normally fade to faint marks over months. Keeping the wounds clean while they heal and protecting them from strong sun helps them settle.

⚠ Get urgent help if…

• Increasing redness, heat, swelling or discharge from the wounds (possible infection)
• A high temperature or feeling generally unwell
• A hot, swollen, increasingly painful knee (possible joint infection)
• Calf pain, swelling, redness or warmth (possible blood clot)
• Sudden breathlessness or chest pain — call 999, as this may be a clot on the lungs
• Severe pain not controlled by your painkillers, or a knee that locks or gives way

Who to contact: your surgeon or clinic first (keep their number to hand). For urgent advice when you can't reach them, call NHS 111. In an emergency, call 999.

General guidance — it doesn't replace the specific advice your surgeon gives you.

Results & realistic expectations

For the right problem — such as a true locked knee from a torn meniscus or a loose body — arthroscopy can relieve catching, locking or instability. Where it is done for these specific reasons, many people do well.

Where knee pain is mainly from osteoarthritis or an age-related meniscal tear without locking, the evidence shows arthroscopy is unlikely to help more than exercise and physiotherapy, and it carries surgical risk. A good surgeon will only recommend it when there is a clear mechanical problem it can address, and will be honest if the likely cause is wear and tear.

When arthroscopy treats a specific mechanical problem, the relief can be long-lasting. However, it does not stop arthritis, and if the underlying joint is worn, symptoms may continue or return over time. Removing meniscus cartilage can slightly increase the long-term risk of arthritis in that knee, which is one reason repair is sometimes preferred when possible.

Combining with other procedures

Arthroscopy is sometimes part of a larger keyhole operation, for example examining and preparing the joint during ACL (cruciate ligament) reconstruction. It is not usually combined with treatment aimed at arthritis itself, because arthroscopy does not treat arthritis.

Follow-up & long-term care

You will usually be reviewed after surgery to discuss what was found and done, check the wounds and plan any physiotherapy. If a meniscal repair was performed, follow-up and rehabilitation are more involved. You should be told who to contact if you have signs of infection, a blood clot or a knee that locks or gives way.

• Continue strengthening and mobility exercises as advised
• Manage your weight to reduce load on the knee
• Keep up lower-impact activity to protect the joint
• Return to sport only when your physiotherapist agrees, especially after a repair

Revision and secondary surgery reality

• If symptoms come from arthritis, they often continue after arthroscopy and may later lead to knee replacement.
• A meniscal repair sometimes fails to heal and needs a further operation.
• Removing meniscus cartilage cannot be undone and may bring forward arthritis.
• Some people need further investigation if the cause of pain remains unclear.

Ask your surgeon for their own revision rate, what counts as a revision, and what is included in the written aftercare policy.

What good aftercare looks like

• A clear explanation of what was found and done, in writing where possible.
• A physiotherapy plan suited to whether the meniscus was trimmed or repaired.
• A named contact and out-of-hours route for infection or clot symptoms.
• Honest advice if symptoms are likely to be from arthritis and what to do next.
• Guidance on a sensible return to work, activity and sport.

What affects the cost

Costs vary a great deal between people and providers, and we don't publish prices. What matters is understanding what drives the cost and making sure your quote is complete. The main things that affect it:

• The surgeon's fee and the anaesthetist's fee
• Hospital or day-case facility fee and theatre time
• Whether only a look is planned or a repair / trim / removal is done
• Any implants or fixation used for a meniscal repair
• Physiotherapy and rehabilitation included in the package
• Follow-up appointments and review of findings
• What is covered if a complication occurs

• The surgeon's and anaesthetist's fees
• The day-case facility and theatre
• Any equipment used for a meniscal repair
• Physiotherapy and follow-up appointments
• What happens, and who pays, if a complication occurs
• The cancellation and rescheduling policy
• What happens if the operation does not relieve symptoms

On the NHS? Knee arthroscopy is available on the NHS for specific mechanical problems, but is not recommended for osteoarthritis or routine wear-related knee pain; private referral does not change that evidence.

You're entitled to your total cost in writing — including aftercare and any revision — before you decide.

Consent traps and marketing red flags

These are not small details. They are often where patients lose choice, time to reflect, or realistic expectations.

Choosing a surgeon safely

• Check your surgeon is on the GMC Specialist Register for this area.
• Make sure they practise at a CQC-registered location, and look for membership of bodies like BAAPS or BAPRAS.
• You're entitled to a two-stage consent process with time to reflect (a cooling-off period). The surgeon who will operate must consent you — not a salesperson.
• Be wary of pressure: time-limited offers, discounts or deposits taken before you've had time to think are red flags, not bargains.
• You're entitled to your total cost in writing — including aftercare and any revision — before you decide.

How Vuemedics verifies every consultant →

Take this to your consultation. A good surgeon will welcome every one of these.

• Exactly what problem do you expect to find and treat, and is it mechanical or wear-related?
• Does my scan show something arthroscopy helps, or mainly osteoarthritis?
• Have I tried enough physiotherapy and non-surgical treatment first?
• What is the realistic chance this will reduce my symptoms?
• Would you try to repair the meniscus or remove it, and how does that affect my recovery and future arthritis risk?
• What happens if the operation does not help my pain?
• Are you on the GMC Specialist Register for this area, and which Royal College or professional body are you a member of?
• Will you be the surgeon who carries out my operation, and who looks after me afterwards?
• What are the risks for someone like me, and how often do your own patients have a problem or need it repeated or redone?
• What does a realistic result look like — and what can this operation not achieve?
• What are my options, including waiting, doing nothing for now, or choosing a different approach?
• Can I have written information, results and aftercare instructions in a format I can use, including any accessibility or communication support I need?
• What is the total cost in writing, including any follow-ups, and how much time do I have to decide?

Find a verified surgeon for knee arthroscopy

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How we made this page

Medically reviewed by a GMC-registered consultant. Written in plain English, checked against NHS, NICE, GMC and relevant Royal College / specialist-society guidance, and kept under review. No clinic paid to appear on this page, and we publish no pricing. This is general information to help you prepare — it is not a substitute for advice from your own clinician. How we review our guides →

Source hierarchy: UK regulator and NHS/NICE guidance first, then relevant Royal College or specialist-society guidance, then peer-reviewed evidence for procedure-specific figures where available.

Sources & standards: NICE NG226 — Osteoarthritis in over 16s (arthroscopic procedures) NHS — Knee ligament surgery (keyhole techniques) London Choosing Wisely — Knee arthroscopy policy (NHS) FIDELITY trial — arthroscopic partial meniscectomy vs placebo surgery (5-year) — PMC Likelihood of knee replacement after arthroscopy for osteoarthritis: systematic review — PMC Symptomatic venous thromboembolism after knee arthroscopy — PMC Benefits and harms of arthroscopy for degenerative knee disease — BMJ

Reviews reflect patients' experience of care, not clinical outcomes. For procedure volumes and outcome data see PHIN.

Last medically reviewed 2026-09-21. Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report an error in this guide.