Abstract

A questionnaire was sent to members of the Arthroscopy Association of North America surveying complications in arthroscopic surgery of the knee and other joints. There were 395,566 arthroscopies reported including 375,069 knee arthroscopies, 14,329 shoulder arthroscopies, 4,478 ankle arthroscopies, 1,569 elbow arthroscopies, and 121 wrist arthroscopies. There were 2,215 complications reported. The overall complication rate was 0.56%. Specific procedures were surveyed for the first time. The complication rate reported for meniscal repair was 2.4%. The complication rate in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) procedures (repairs and reconstructions) was 1.8%. The procedure with the highest complication rate was the anterior staple capsulorrhaphy of the shoulder (5.3%). Surgery in the subacromial space resulted in a complication rate of 0.76%. None of these complication rates included failures. As newer procedures are instituted into clinical practice that involve various joints, and are more technically demanding, the complication rate is increasing.