Knee arthroscopy surgery at Spire Regency Hospital Macclesfield

At Spire Regency Hospital, our team of orthopaedic (bone and muscle) surgeons can offer you a treatment and care plan that's personalised to you and your needs. Our dedicated nurses and physiotherapists will provide expert aftercare to help you get the most from your operation.

We offer fast diagnosis to treatment time and easy booking with appointment times to suit you.

At Spire Regency Hospital, we have wide experience of performing knee arthroscopy in our high-quality facilities.

The procedures offered to you will depend on your symptoms or condition. Some of our consultants perform microfracture – where they make small holes in your bones to stimulate cartilage growth.

We also have two laminar flow operating theatres which regulate air flow to minimise the risk of infection.

Finding us

We’re located just five minutes away from Macclesfield town centre and Macclesfield station, with free on-site parking available for you and your visitors.

Your consultations

All of our 10 consultation rooms are located on the ground floor, meaning you shouldn’t have any difficulty if your knee problems are affecting your mobility. Your consultations provide you with a space to talk openly about your needs and hopes for your operation. Your consultant will ensure you’re being offered the best treatment for you. If you don’t currently have a diagnosis your consultant will do the following:

• Discuss what may have happened to cause your symptoms (eg a sports injury or fall)
• Ask about your medical history
• They may recommend using our scanning, imaging and diagnostic technologies to look at your knee to help understand the cause of your pain or mobility issues

Here’s what will happen on the day of your knee arthroscopy:

• You’ll meet your orthopaedic surgeon again and your anaesthetist
• You’ll be given the type of anaesthetic that you’ve agreed with your consultant – either a general, when you’re asleep, or a spinal or epidural, when you’re either sedated or awake but can’t feel anything below your waist
• Your surgeon will make two or more small incisions into your knee then pass the arthroscope – a thin, flexible, telescopic instrument with a light and a tiny video camera on the end – into your knee joint to view it
• They'll then repair damage to cartilage or ligaments, remove loose bone fragments or scar tissue, and may take tissue samples if there’s inflammation

If you’ve come with a friend or family member, they’re welcome to wait in our restaurant or your room while you have your operation.

After your operation, you may go home on the same day or the following day, depending on the time of your surgery. Your consultant may also explain to you what’s been found and whether they recommend further treatment.

Although there’s less pain after an arthroscopy than with traditional surgery, you’re likely to feel discomfort once the anaesthetic wears off. How long this lasts will depend on:

• The cause of your knee pain
• Whether you had any treatment during the procedure
• If you have an ongoing knee disease or injury needing further treatment
• Your personal pain threshold

You’ll be given painkillers to help you manage over the following days. Your physiotherapist will also give you an exercise plan to help you get active again, plus a guide to how long your recovery will take.

Although everybody’s different and you should always follow your consultant’s advice, here’s a typical recovery timeline for knee arthroscopy: