Meniscal Tear

A meniscal tear is one of the most common cartilage injuries of the knee. It is painful and debilitating. The meniscus is a piece of cartilage that provides a cushion between the femur and tibia. Each knee has two menisci in the knee joints (inner or medial meniscus and outer or lateral meniscus). The menisci can be damaged or torn by traumatic force most often happening during sports (Magee, Thomas H., and Gary W. Hinson, 1998). It can happen when someone twists the upper part of their leg while their foot and lower leg stays locked in another position. The injury can range from a minor tear in which the meniscus stays intact to a major split in the meniscus. The injury can happen to anyone, not just athletes. In older people, the meniscus

You might hear or feel a “pop” when you tear a meniscus. Most people can still walk with meniscal tears. After two or three days, the knee will slowly become more stiff and swollen. Some of the most common symptoms of a tear are pain, locking of the knee or your knee giving away. A locked knee occurs when the knee cannot fully straighten from a bent position. When the bucket-handle fragment of meniscus cartilage is displaced into the front of the joint, it prevents the knee from fully straightening. These bucket-handle tears usually involve a small portion of the meniscus and do not have the ability to heal because they happen in a part of the body that does not have blood supply. They are usually trimmed or even shaved. The earlier these tears are treated, the less meniscus that has to be trimmed. If left untreated, a piece of the meniscus may come free and float into the joint and the knee may begin to slip, pop or lock. Bucket-handle tears are usually caused by trauma. About 40% of bucket-handle tears are associated with an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury. This is common with sports injuries, one of the major knee ligaments is damaged, and at the same time the bucket-handle meniscus tear

This surgery is more common than doing a meniscus repair. Though occasionally therapists or doctors can maneuver the tear into its correct position, the surgery is still necessary. It is done to remove the damaged portion of the meniscus but leaves as much healthy meniscus as possible. An incision about 5 mm is made in the knee to allow a camera into the joint. Then a second small incision is made to insert small instruments such as shavers, probes and biters to perform any necessary procedures. The surgery does not have to be done immediately but should be done as soon as possible so the knee can begin to fully straighten. The recovery time is usually quick and you can start physical activities soon after the meniscectomy (Baratz, Mark E., Freddie H. Fu, and Richard Mengato,