The early days of arthroscopic surgery in japan

In the early days of arthroscopic surgery in Japan, Dr. Masaki Watanabe successfully performed punch biopsy through a separate trocar in 1950, removed a giant cell tumor located in the suprapatellar recess in 1955, removed a loose body in 1961, and accomplished partial meniscectomy in 1962. His studies as a pioneer had a most favorable influence upon me. However, in this article, I would like to talk about my failures. My first paper on the subject of arthroscopic surgery, "Surgery Under Arthroscopic Control," was presented at the Second International Arthroscopy Meeting held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in July 1975. This article was later published in the Journal o f Rheumatology (1). Even in 1975, I could not expect that the use of operative arthroscopy would spread around the world as it has. The surgery discussed in this initial paper was performed with the No. 21 arthroscope. The surgical procedures were as follows: