aspect of
arthroscopy," says
Dr. Owens, a profes-
sor of orthopedic
surgery at Brown
University Alpert
Medical School in
Providence, R.I. "If
you can't see, you
can't perform sur-
gery. Surgeons do
fine with older
pumps, but if they're struggling with visualization, a new pump can
help."
He performs complex knee and shoulder procedures and has essen-
tially eliminated tourniquet use and associated complications —post-
op pain, DVT and post-op bleeding — by using a high-quality pump to
maintain a bloodless field.
Surgeons must sustain constant pressure within the joint in order to
maintain capsular integrity, but must also avoid fluid extravasation
and "red out," which occurs when blood and fluid in the joint create
an opaque cloud. "That's a frustrating scenario, which can be avoided
by increasing the pressure and maintaining an adequate flow of fluid
to clear blood from the field of vision," says Dr. Owens.
He says older pumps feature pressure-sensing transducers that read
how much pressure is being generated within the pump line, but that
reading doesn't always translate to the pressure within the joint. Newer
pump systems are controlled by pressure and flow, and automatically
adjust the amount of fluid delivered to the joint based on those 2 factors.
The latest pump systems are also integrated into arthroscopy
5 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • F E B R U A R U Y 2 0 1 8
• BIG-SCREEN SURGERY Large 4K monitors help orthopedic surgeon Joseph Kendra,
MD, trim torn cartilage more efficiently.
Ric
Moseley
