Dr. Knox Puts HD Video to Use In Outpatient Surgery

High definition video is coming not only to American television, but also to your surgeon’s operating room. At Mountain Home Outpatient Surgery Center, Dr. Thomas E. Knox is already using a new, high definition camera system to diagnose joint problems and perform arthroscopic surgery, which is less invasive than traditional surgery.

“This high definition video system improves the images we see during arthroscopic surgery because the technology handles five times more information than standard definition cameras,” Dr. Knox said. “Now, we view those images on widescreen, flat panel displays in the operating room.” The images are in anatomical color and have details previously unseen with standard definition surgical cameras, the orthopaedic surgeon said.

Dr. Knox is able to repair many common shoulder, hip, and knee problems with less invasive surgical techniques. The joint is viewed through a video arthroscope, or slender tube inserted into the joint, and combined with a high definition camera head, an HD camera control unit, and ultra high resolution, widescreen displays. Surgeons work through small cuts in the skin instead of a large incision that separates skin and muscle. Procedures may often be done with local anesthesia due to the smaller incisions.

One reason Dr. Knox chose the system from Smith & Nephew is its completeness. “It is an end-to-end system,” Dr. Knox said, “with all components supporting high definition technology.” The surgical images can be captured during the procedure and stored with a patient’s medical history. The high definition camera system Dr. Knox uses at Mountain Home Outpatient Surgery Center produces images of broadcast quality, he said.

Dr. Knox has practiced in Mountain Home since 1983 and is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. He is a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Arthroscopy Association of North America and served on the AANA bylaws committee through 2008. Dr. Knox’s practice is Knox Orthopaedics, at 3 Medical Plaza. For more information, call (870) 424-3400 or 1-800-621-3218.

Knox Orthopaedics provides diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of the hand, knee, hip, and shoulder, total joint replacement, sports medicine, diagnostic radiology services, open MRI, hand, and shoulder therapy.