An international panel concluded knee arthroscopy is often a waste of resources and patients with degenerative knee disease should most often not undergo the procedure, STAT reports.
Dr. Reed Siemieniuk, a physician at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario Canada, chaired the panel.
Here are five panel insights:
1. Knee arthroscopy is the most common orthopedic procedure, with surgeons performing 2 million of the surgeries annually around the globe.
2. The panel surmised the surgery is likely popular due to a "combination of financial incentives, patient frustration at more conservative approaches and delays in incorporating new evidence into current practice," STAT reports.
3. The panel wrote a guideline in the BMJ, recommending against arthroscopic surgery, after reviewing studies of more than 1.8 million patients.
4. Upon review, the panel reported patients undergoing knee arthroscopy often do not experience significant improvements in long-term pain or function.
5. In response, David Jevsevar, MD, chair of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons' council on research and quality, said AAOS agrees broadly with the guideline but warns there are always exceptions to guidelines.