A detached arthroscopic lens within the shoulder joint: a case report

Abstract

Shoulder arthroscopy has become a common procedure in today's orthopedic practice. The safety of this procedure has been well established, but there are some complications associated with every surgical procedure both minor and major. In the present era, with advanced arthroscopic instruments, it is rare to encounter the problem of instrument breakage during arthroscopic surgery. Here, we report an unusual case in which we found a detached arthroscopic lens within the shoulder joint. A 58-year-old male patient who was previously operated for shoulder arthroscopy for the treatment of impingement syndrome combined with shoulder stiffness. We performed shoulder arthroscopy again and removed the detached lens arthroscopically. This case warrants the need for the surgeon and the operating room staff to be well acquainted with the arthroscopic instruments and to check the instruments properly before and after the completion of the procedure. If the operating room staff would have identified the damage to the scope, encountered during the primary operation, we could have avoided the second procedure to remove the lens.