Patients often ask: I (a family member) have osteoarthritis in my knee and would like to have minimally invasive treatment, is it effective? Can it be cured? If it can be relieved, how long will it last? It is difficult to answer such inquiries. Even if you see the film, it is difficult to make treatment and prognosis without examination and history. Otherwise, you don’t need to see a doctor when you are sick, just ask a doctor! Not all osteoarthritis of the knee, is suitable for arthroscopic treatment. Arthroscopy as a treatment tool must consider: 1. the details of the patient’s lesion and which structures within the joint are problematic. It is not just a generalized “osteoarthritis”. Otherwise, we can ask the doctor to come out again. 2, the stage of the joint lesion, too light, do not need to do, may need to exercise, physical therapy, drugs, closed; too heavy, arthroscopic treatment is ineffective, or limited relief, rather than direct joint replacement, so as not to suffer more than one surgery. 3, pick up point 1, the symptoms of the joint, medical history and imaging data, determine whether arthroscopic treatment can be performed. For example, a patient with obvious symptoms of mechanical compression, the doctor found this clear site of compression, do arthroscopic treatment, is generally a good choice. 4. Age and gender also need to be considered. Arthroscopy is sometimes done to gain a little time for joint replacement and to avoid replacement too young, after all, artificial joints have a limited life span. However, sometimes, after receiving arthroscopic treatment, the more painful the joint (more common in women, of course, it is likely that the indications are not selected). 5. According to foreign literature, joint irrigation has no significance in relieving the progression of osteoarthritis, so it is better to save your breath if you think that a random arthroscopic irrigation and cleaning can relieve osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis suitable for arthroscopic treatment is roughly divided into the following cases: 1, there is aging, but there is a new injury, and as a result, the symptoms are significantly aggravated. In this case, there may be meniscal tears, bone loss, etc., arthroscopic treatment is very effective and meaningful, because to avoid further deterioration of the joint. 2, swelling obvious joint, drugs, physical therapy, closed can not be effectively relieved, and the loss of cartilage lesion is not particularly serious, arthroscopic treatment, is a good choice. 3, there are obvious compression symptoms of the joint, divided into the following cases: a bone superfluous stimulation of the joint capsule; b free body grinding cartilage; c bone superfluous compression of the internal structure of the joint, such as the intercondylar fossa bone superfluous grinding cruciate ligament, I like to call it “internal compression”; d synovial and other soft tissue compression stimulation, such as the medial synovial crease syndrome. In conclusion, the suitability of arthroscopic “minimally invasive treatment” for osteoarthritis cannot be generalized and must be based on the patient’s specific situation. The wrong choice can lead to unnecessary surgery, for example, if closure would have solved the problem, or if relief is not obvious or even aggravated after surgery ~ all of which can cause pain to the patient and trouble to the doctor. The patient’s situation is very variable and requires the doctor to screen. When you get sick, it is better to find a professional doctor honestly.