Arthroscopic and open synovectomy of the elbow in rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract

Synovectomy has been advocated for early treatment of the rheumatoid elbow. It has not been determined whether arthroscopic or open synovectomy is better and whether a preoperative arc of flexion of >90 degrees is an important prognostic factor. Arthroscopic or open synovectomy was performed in fifty-eight elbows in fifty-three patients with rheumatoid arthritis and radiographic changes in the joint of Larsen grade 2 or less. Clinical symptoms, recurrent synovitis, postoperative complications, and radiographic changes were assessed ten to eighteen years (average, thirteen years) postoperatively. Eleven (48%) of twenty-three elbows in which arthroscopic synovectomy had been performed and sixteen (70%) of twenty-three elbows in which open synovectomy had been performed were mildly or not painful at the latest follow-up evaluation. However, no significant difference was detected between the overall clinical results of arthroscopic synovectomy and those of open synovectomy. In elbows with a preoperative arc of flexion of <90 degrees , the clinical results of the two procedures were comparable. In elbows with a preoperative arc of flexion of <90 degrees , arthroscopic synovectomy provided significantly (p < 0.05) better function than open surgery after mid-term follow-up, and motion and function continued to be better in those patients at the most recent follow-up evaluation. Recurrent synovitis was observed in six elbows that had arthroscopic synovectomy and in three that had open synovectomy, and the Larsen grade increased in both groups. Three elbows with a preoperative arc of flexion of <90 degrees underwent a total elbow arthroplasty to treat ankylosis after open synovectomy. Surgical complications were uncommon and not severe. Arthroscopic synovectomy of the elbow is a reliable procedure. One of the most favorable indications for either arthroscopic or open synovectomy is a preoperative arc of elbow flexion of >/=90 degrees in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis.