Portable arthroscope with periscope optics

A hand-held portable arthroscope (10) has a camera assembly (100) and a disposable scope assembly (80) rotatably attached to the distal end of the camera assembly (100). A probe (30) which includes a fibre optic image guide (32) and a plurality of optical illuminating fibres (34) is rotatably mounted on the scope assembly (80), and is insertable into a body for imaging the internal structure of the body. The illuminating fibres (34) extend through the scope assembly (80) and are connected in light communication with a quartz halogen lamp (20) for illuminating the internal body structure being imaged. To gather light from the illuminated internal structure of a body into which the probe (30) has been inserted, a GRIN rod (48) is attached to the distal end of the image guide (32). The image guide (32) is bent near its distal end to offset the axis of the GRIN rod (48) from the axis of the camera assembly (100), to enhance the field of view of the arthroscope (10) when the scope assembly (80), which supports the image guide (32) with GRIN rod (48), is rotated. Focusing optics (116) are mounted in the camera assembly (100) in light communication with the image guide (32). These focusing optics (116) are axially movable within the camera assembly (100) for focusing the image from the image guide (32). Light which passes through the focusing optics (116) enters a camera head (118) which is also mounted in the camera assembly (100). The camera head (118) is in turn electrically connected to a video display device (26) for producing an image of the internal structure of the body.