What is wrist arthroscopic surgery?

Arthroscopy is a way to find problems and do surgery inside a joint without making a large cut (incision). Your doctor puts a lighted tube with a tiny camera through small incisions. The camera is called an arthroscope, or scope.

Wrist arthroscopy can treat several problems.

• For arthritis, your doctor smooths the rough surfaces of your wrist bones. Inflamed or thickened tissue may also be removed.
• For a wrist that does not move easily, or feels as though it locks, your doctor may repair or take out a loose piece of cartilage or bone.
• For a broken wrist, your doctor can put the bones back in the correct positions.
• For a wrist with pain and limited movement, your doctor may find and remove scar tissue. Or a growth called a ganglion cyst may be removed.

You probably will go home on the day of the surgery. When you can go back to your usual routine depends on your wrist problem. You may need about 6 weeks to recover. It may take longer if you had damaged tissue repaired. You may have to limit your activity until your wrist strength and movement are back to normal. You may also need physical or occupational therapy.

If you have a desk job, you may be able to go back to work a few days to a few weeks after the surgery. If you lift things or do physical labor at work, it may be 1 to 2 months before you can go back.

Activity

• Rest when you feel tired. Getting enough sleep will help you recover. Use pillows to raise your wrist and arm above the level of your heart. Try to walk each day. Start by walking a little more than you did the day before. Bit by bit, increase the amount you walk. Walking boosts blood flow and helps prevent pneumonia and constipation.
• You may have a sling. Follow your doctor's instructions on how to use it.
• Avoid lifting anything that would make you strain. This may include a child, heavy grocery bags and milk containers, a heavy briefcase or backpack, cat litter or dog food bags, or a vacuum cleaner.
• Your doctor will tell you how often and how much you can move your wrist and arm.
• If you have a desk job, you will probably be able to return to work or your normal routine in a few days to a few weeks. If you have to lift heavier objects at work, it may take months before you return to work.
• You can take a shower 48 to 72 hours after surgery and clean the incisions with regular soap and water. Do not take a bath or soak your wrist until your doctor says it is okay.
• Ask your doctor when you can drive again.

Diet

• You can eat your normal diet. If your stomach is upset, try bland, low-fat foods like plain rice, broiled chicken, toast, and yogurt.
• Drink plenty of fluids, unless your doctor tells you not to.
• You may notice that your bowel movements are not regular right after your surgery. This is common. Try to avoid constipation and straining with bowel movements. You may want to take a fiber supplement every day. If you have not had a bowel movement after a couple of days, ask your doctor about taking a mild laxative.

Medicines

• Your doctor will tell you if and when you can restart your medicines. You will also get instructions about taking any new medicines.
• If you stopped taking aspirin or some other blood thinner, your doctor will tell you when to start taking it again.
• Be safe with medicines. Take pain medicines exactly as directed.
  • If the doctor gave you a prescription medicine for pain, take it as prescribed.
  • If you are not taking a prescription pain medicine, ask your doctor if you can take an over-the-counter medicine.
• If you think your pain medicine is making you sick to your stomach:
  • Take your medicine after meals (unless your doctor has told you not to).
  • Ask your doctor for a different pain medicine.
• If your doctor prescribed antibiotics, take them as directed. Do not stop taking them just because you feel better. You need to take the full course of antibiotics.

Incision care

• If you have a dressing over your cuts (incisions), keep it clean and dry. You may remove it 48 to 72 hours after the surgery.
• If your incisions are open to the air, keep the area clean and dry.
• If you have strips of tape on the incisions, leave the tape on for a week or until it falls off.

Exercise

• The day after surgery, you can lift your shoulder up and down to keep it loose.
• Bend and straighten your elbow slowly several times throughout the day.
• Move your fingers as much as your bandages will allow.
• Depending on why you had the surgery, you may have to do wrist and arm exercises. Your doctor or your physical or occupational therapist will give you exercises as part of a rehabilitation program.
• Stop any activity that causes sharp pain. Talk to your doctor or your physical or occupational therapist about what sports or other exercise you can do.

Ice

• To reduce swelling and pain, put ice or a cold pack on your wrist for 10 to 20 minutes at a time. Do this every 1 to 2 hours. Put a thin cloth between the ice and your skin. If your doctor recommended cold therapy using a portable machine, follow the directions that came with the machine.

Surgery can be stressful. This information will help you understand what you can expect. And it will help you safely prepare for surgery.

Preparing for surgery

• You may need to shower or bathe with a special soap the night before and the morning of your surgery. The soap contains chlorhexidine. It reduces the amount of bacteria on your skin that could cause an infection after surgery.
• Be sure you have someone to take you home. Anesthesia and pain medicine will make it unsafe for you to drive or get home on your own.
• Understand exactly what surgery is planned, along with the risks, benefits, and other options.
• If you take a medicine that prevents blood clots, your doctor may tell you to stop taking it before your surgery. Or your doctor may tell you to keep taking it. (These medicines include aspirin and other blood thinners.) Make sure that you understand exactly what your doctor wants you to do.
• Tell your doctor ALL the medicines, vitamins, supplements, and herbal remedies you take. Some may increase the risk of problems during your surgery. Your doctor will tell you if you should stop taking any of them before the surgery and how soon to do it.
• Make sure your doctor and the hospital have a copy of your advance directive. If you don’t have one, you may want to prepare one. It lets others know your health care wishes. It’s a good thing to have before any type of surgery or procedure.

Arthroscopy is a way to find problems and do surgery inside a joint without making a large cut (incision). Your doctor put a lighted tube with a tiny camera—called an arthroscope, or scope—and surgical tools through small incisions in your wrist.

You will feel tired for several days. Your wrist will be swollen. And you may notice that your skin is a different color near the cuts (incisions). This is normal and will start to go away in a few days. Keeping your arm higher than your heart for the first few days after surgery will help with swelling and pain.

When you can go back to work or your usual routine depends on the kind of surgery you had. You will probably need about 6 weeks to recover. If you had a repair of damaged tissue, recovery will take longer. You may have to limit your activity until your wrist strength and movement are back to normal. You may also be in a rehabilitation (rehab) program.

• Follow the instructions exactly about when to stop eating and drinking. If you don't, your surgery may be canceled. If your doctor told you to take your medicines on the day of surgery, take them with only a sip of water.
• Take a bath or shower before you come in for your surgery. Do not apply lotions, perfumes, deodorants, or nail polish.
• Do not shave the surgical site yourself.
• Take off all jewelry and piercings. And take out contact lenses, if you wear them.
• Wear a shirt that is easy to put on and take off. Your wrist may have a large bandage or be in a sling after surgery.

At the hospital or surgery center

• Bring a picture ID.
• The area for surgery is often marked to make sure there are no errors.
• You will be kept comfortable and safe by your anesthesia provider. You may be asleep or have medicine to relax you. And if you're awake, the area will be numbed. It's often numbed even if you are asleep.
• The surgery will take about 1 to 2 hours.