Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Joint infection risk after needle arthroscopy in dogs
By Chiaramonte, Alessandra et al.·Published in PloS one·2026·Department of Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Observed joint infection incidence following needle arthroscopy performed in operating and nonoperating room environments in client-owned dogs: A retrospective cohort study.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 75 dogs underwent a procedure called needle arthroscopy to treat joint issues, with some dogs receiving the procedure in a traditional operating room and others in a non-surgical setting. After the procedures, there were no reported joint infections in either group, suggesting that the risk of infection is low when proper cleanliness is maintained, regardless of the location. This means that needle arthroscopy can be safely performed in both environments without increasing the risk of complications.
People also search for: dog joint infection after surgery · needle arthroscopy for dogs · dog surgery infection risk
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To report the use of needle arthroscopy (NA) on an outpatient basis and to compare joint infection rates following needle arthroscopy performed under general anesthesia in an operating room (OR) versus heavy sedation in a nonoperating room (NOR) clinical environment in client-owned dogs. We hypothesized that there would be no observed increase in infection risk dependent on location in this cohort. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study of 75 dogs, inclusive of 90 individual joints, that underwent needle arthroscopy at one academic institution from May 4th, 2022, through December 20th, 2024. A consent form authorizing the use of medical information for clinical research was obtained for every dog undergoing treatment upon admission to the hospital. RESULTS: After excluding for pre-existing infection, fifty-six joint NA (45 dogs) were performed in an operating room under general anesthesia, while thirty-four joint NA (30 dogs) were performed under heavy sedation in a nonoperating room environment. Routine follow-up was collected either in clinic or by referring veterinarian examinations for NA OR (57.8 ± 0.87 days, range 7-365 days) and NA NOR (42.6 ± 1 day, range 7-425 days). One case in the OR group was lost to follow-up. No inferential statistical analysis was performed due to no observed infections in either treatment group. CONCLUSION: In this cohort, no postoperative joint infections were observed following outpatient needle arthroscopy performed under heavy sedation when appropriate aseptic technique was used.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41739797/