Isokinetic and functional evaluation of the knee following arthroscopic surgery.

Surgery for internal derangement of the knee has been performed for functional disability. Arthroscopic surgery offers improved function sooner than conventional knee surgery. In three groups of patients, no complications occurred, convalescence was markedly decreased, and expedient limb function was achieved. Postoperative morbidity, i.e., increased edema, loss of motion and muscle inhibition, appeared much less than reports indicate with conventional open surgery. Conventional knee surgery was not compared with arthroscopic surgery because the author stopped performing conventional knee surgery. These date confirm the viability of arthroscopic surgery to achieve early restoration of function for a variety of knee disorders.