Local anesthesia for knee arthroscopy. Efficacy and cost benefits.

We performed a retrospective review of a series of knee arthroscopic procedures that were completed using local, general, or regional anesthesia to evaluate the efficacy of these anesthetic techniques. Operative time, complications or failures, procedures successfully performed, recovery room time and postoperative stay, and patient satisfaction were recorded. Local anesthesia with intravenous sedation compared favorably with the other techniques: operative time was not increased, a large variety of operative procedures were successfully completed, recovery time was significantly shortened, and patient satisfaction remained high. This technique offers several advantages over other types of anesthesia for knee arthroscopy, including improved cost effectiveness.