Compartment Syndrome as a Complication of Routine Knee Arthroscopy: Report of Five Cases and Review of the Literature

Compartment syndrome is defined as the progressive condition in which increased compartmental interstitial pressure exceeds capillary pressures resulting in neurovascular ischemia. It is most commonly seen after trauma. It is a very rare complication of routine diagnostic arthroscopy, of which few cases have been reported. Diagnostic arthroscopy of the knee is one of the most common surgical procedures performed in orthopedics. It is generally considered a lowrisk procedure with a minimal complication rate. Sherman et al. [1] in 1986 reported a series of 2,640 arthroscopic procedures of the knee, and the incidence of complications was of 8.2 %. The major complications included infection, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, vascular injury, nerve injury, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, hematoma, adhesions and intraarticular instrument breakage. The minor complications included superficial wound infection, ecchymosis and wound healing problems. INTRODUCTION CASE REPORT orthopaedic journal texas