Joint debridement
Dr. Michael Lehmann

Joint washout to alleviate symptoms of osteoarthritis

Joint debridement (joint washout) can be useful for alleviating symptoms of osteoarthritis. It can be carried out during a joint inspection (arthroscopy). Specialist instruments are used to smooth frayed areas of cartilage and flush free-floating pieces of cartilage out of the joint (joint washout).

This joint washout procedure can often markedly alleviate the current symptoms of osteoarthritis, however it does not heal the cartilage defect. The effect of this procedure is limited to around 2 years.