The Casuccio-Santacroce-Banfo knee arthroscope: an avant-garde Italian tale in the history of arthroscopy

This brief historical note describes an arthroscopic instrument presented in Italy in 1950, and still preserved to this day at the library of the Rizzoli Orthopedic Institute in Bologna, Italy. A research on Casuccio, Santacroce, and Banfo prolific scientific collaboration was performed. The arthroscopic instrument was designed and utilized at the Orthopedic Clinic of the University of Bari, directed by Professor Casuccio, in collaboration with his assistant, Antonio Santacroce, and Giorgio Banfo, an orthopedist, entrepreneur, and owner of a modern establishment dedicated to the production of orthopaedic products and medical instruments. Much like America and Japan, 1950s Italy offered avant-garde arthroscopic instruments, which resulted from a masterful collaboration of research and development.