Complications of Synovial Endoscopic Surgery (Arthroscopy, Tenoscopy, Bursoscopy)

For the purposes of this chapter, synovial endoscopic surgery refers to all procedures that use a rigid endoscope to evaluate and treat the intrasynovial environment of a joint (arthroscopy), tendon sheath (tenoscopy), or bursa (bursoscopy). In the horse, synovial endoscopic surgery is the best surgical procedure for evaluating, diagnosing, and treating intrasynovial lesions. This chapter presents the definition, risk factors, pathogenesis, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and expected outcome for the intraoperative and postoperative complications associated with synovial endoscopic. Preoperative planning is crucial for the success of any surgery and is no different for synovial endoscopic surgery. Many preoperative planning complications occur because the surgeon was rushed and/or failed to come up with a basic plan. Most complications that occur from inadequate preoperative planning result in minor added surgical morbidity that usually have minimal effects on the overall success of the surgery.