Arthroscopic Management of Inflammatory Arthritis Affecting the Elbow

Inflammatory arthritis of elbow at the outset may present with pain, swelling, and restriction of movements, while deformities are associated with chronic cases. Surgical intervention is the mainstay of treatment, especially in rheumatoid elbow not responding to conservative management and disease-modifying anti-rheumatoid drug (DMARD) therapy. Traditionally, open procedures along with radial head resection were the most popular procedures and associated with severe morbidities as elbow joints are very notorious for being stiff after any manipulation or surgical intervention. With the advent of new techniques, equipment, and surgical skills, it is convenient to perform synovectomy, debridement, and decompression of elbow joint with keyhole arthroscopic surgeries, which are becoming very popular to improve arc of motion and pain relief with minimal postoperative morbidity as it allows early rehabilitation. Recent literature has documented effectiveness of arthroscopic synovectomy in inflammatory arthritis (mild-to-moderate severity) of elbow at short-term as well as long-term follow-up. Arthroscopic surgery of elbow is more demanding than open procedures so a steep learning curve may be expected for surgeons.