Meniscus tear...any advice for me?

[Aerides]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chassis @Aerides which specialty does the doc practice that you refer to?

Orthopedic surgery, arthroscopic and fracture, mainly knees and shoulders are his thing, irrc.

[harllee]

I went to an orthopedic doctor who specialized in knees--that was all he did.

[JT90505]

Any reason not to try Physical Therapy and if it does not provide a level of relief you can live with then have surgery?

[harllee]

Before I had my meniscus surgery I tried a few PT sessions--no help. The PT person told me there was not much PT could do for a meniscus tear.

[Aerides]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JT90505 Any reason not to try Physical Therapy and if it does not provide a level of relief you can live with then have surgery?

Depends! The ortho doc can tell more from the MRI. The placement of the tear and the general condition of the overall knee and patient are all factors. There is no one-size-fits-all here.

Of all the surgeries out there though, this is super low on the scale of what's done, and the impact, recovery, scar, etc. Having had one done I'd do the other in a heartbeat if I ended up tearing that one too.

One other benefit from my repair: My doc got a lot of pics from inside my knee during the scope, and was able to let me know my future - showed me in detail where there is cartilage missing, and that there is some arthritis, etc. I'm a candidate for a future partial knee replacement...But! He also guided me to increase strength training in my legs to put that off as long as possible.

[VanWinkle]

I had partial tear of the meniscus in my left Knee in May 2019 that required non-invasive surgery by trimming the damaged meniscus. It was a 1/2 hour surgery with minimal sedation but enough that I didn't know the procedure was being done. I walked out about 2 hrs later with no pain. I did go to 6 sessions of physical therapy as directed. I still do some strengthening exercises for both knees, but no pain at all since the procedure. I hope you have the same luck!!

VW

[CindyBlue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by VanWinkle I had partial tear of the meniscus in my left Knee in May 2019 that required non-invasive surgery by trimming the damaged meniscus. It was a 1/2 hour surgery with minimal sedation but enough that I didn't know the procedure was being done. I walked out about 2 hrs later with no pain. I did go to 6 sessions of physical therapy as directed. I still do some strengthening exercises for both knees, but no pain at all since the procedure. I hope you have the same luck!! VW

Thank you! I sure hope mine is the same type of repairable meniscus tear as yours!

I am still waiting to hear from the doctor. I have been researching a lot since I got the diagnosis. I am torn (no pun intended) about surgery vs wait and see. I've been feeling this pain for quite a while now, and while it's better than it was, it's still not good. I've been taking an anti-inflamitory twice a day as prescribed, and icing it, and wearing a knee brace, and resting it as much as possible, but I'm going stir crazy. I have so much to do here on the property that I can't leave my hubby to do by himself...I need to be up and working (grrr!!) But at least this is the "down time" of the year - lucky for me it's not mowing season!

I am absolutely not opposed to either PT and a wait and see, or surgery, especially if it's going to be a "quick trim."

If I haven't heard from a doctor today, I'll call or email.

[Scusan]

There are a lot of different way to mess up your meniscus. There are different types of tears, different locations (which relate to both the mechanics of the knee and blood flow/reparability), different previously-extant conditions (arthritis, etc).

My story.. the general parts "may" be worth considering in your case. I had some problems with my left knee a few years back, it got to where I couldn't bend it all the way up and had to lay on the bed to put on my pants. I couldn't get down on the ground to do yard work, just got close and then flopped all the way down. It was swollen and I had some pain as well. I tried resting it for a couple months, then went to an orthopedic sports medicine guy. I had a meniscus tear that had created a cyst of "knee goo" behind the knee that was limiting my motion. He recommended surgery, which I scheduled as quickly as possible. Like the OP, I wanted to get "back in action".

I don't use my health insurance or see doctors much, so I did some (more) research on the knee issue as well as all the possible pitfalls of "network/non-network" providers and some of the (very expensive) things that can go haywire in the insurance/billing area. Bottom line is after hours of phone calls, nobody could tell me for sure if they were or were not in network and I often got different answers from the insurance company and the providers (4 providers were surgery center, ortho surgeon, nurse anesthetist, and anesthetist).

I knew that once they stuck the first needle in my arm, I'd lose all control over this and they couldn't even provide answers to simple questions, so I cancelled the surgery. It was a hassle at the time, but worked out well.

A few weeks later, I went to a different ortho surgeon who gave a different opinion on what type of surgery to do, in his opinion the original procedure would not have worked. (Both docs worked on professional sports teams as well). I decided to wait awhile longer.

It's been a few years and I am no longer aware of any discomfort or limitation on that knee. There was a study done (in Europe I believe) where they did either meniscotomy surgery or mock surgery on people with meniscus tears. Results showed that a lot of times, you'll recover on your own, and if not-- you can still get the surgery. Not so the other way around, that chunk of your body was put in the Bio-Waste trash bin at the hospital and it's gone forever.

SO-- I recently started having problems with the OTHER knee. I'm still ambulatory and can work around it, so I'm going to watch and wait.

HTH and remember...YMMV

[CindyBlue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scusan There are a lot of different way to mess up your meniscus. There are different types of tears, different locations (which relate to both the mechanics of the knee and blood flow/reparability), different previously-extant conditions (arthritis, etc). My story.. the general parts "may" be worth considering in your case. I had some problems with my left knee a few years back, it got to where I couldn't bend it all the way up and had to lay on the bed to put on my pants. I couldn't get down on the ground to do yard work, just got close and then flopped all the way down. It was swollen and I had some pain as well. I tried resting it for a couple months, then went to an orthopedic sports medicine guy. I had a meniscus tear that had created a cyst of "knee goo" behind the knee that was limiting my motion. He recommended surgery, which I scheduled as quickly as possible. Like the OP, I wanted to get "back in action". I don't use my health insurance or see doctors much, so I did some (more) research on the knee issue as well as all the possible pitfalls of "network/non-network" providers and some of the (very expensive) things that can go haywire in the insurance/billing area. Bottom line is after hours of phone calls, nobody could tell me for sure if they were or were not in network and I often got different answers from the insurance company and the providers (4 providers were surgery center, ortho surgeon, nurse anesthetist, and anesthetist). I knew that once they stuck the first needle in my arm, I'd lose all control over this and they couldn't even provide answers to simple questions, so I cancelled the surgery. It was a hassle at the time, but worked out well. A few weeks later, I went to a different ortho surgeon who gave a different opinion on what type of surgery to do, in his opinion the original procedure would not have worked. (Both docs worked on professional sports teams as well). I decided to wait awhile longer. It's been a few years and I am no longer aware of any discomfort or limitation on that knee. There was a study done (in Europe I believe) where they did either meniscotomy surgery or mock surgery on people with meniscus tears. Results showed that a lot of times, you'll recover on your own, and if not-- you can still get the surgery. Not so the other way around, that chunk of your body was put in the Bio-Waste trash bin at the hospital and it's gone forever. SO-- I recently started having problems with the OTHER knee. I'm still ambulatory and can work around it, so I'm going to watch and wait. HTH and remember...YMMV

This is good for me to read. It's scary how two different doctors can have such differing opinions. I need to do more reading.

Right now, I'm still waiting to hear from the doctor - any doctor. Grr!! But meanwhile, I'm continuing to do what I am used to doing both in work around the property and in exercise, though trying not to do as much. The pain is worse after I overdid it in pickleball (I'm trying to just stay planted at the "kitchen line" which is easier on my knee, but on Saturday I played most of the court. Stupid, I know...and now I have to live with my hubby saying "I told you so" - and that he's right (grin!))

Unfortunately, I have a rather high pain tolerance, which is not good for my knee, I'm sure.

I sure appreciate so many kind folks relating their experiences with their torn meniscus - it gives me perspective, lots of good information, and a base for further research.

[11522914]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harllee A few years ago ( at age 66) I tore my meniscus dancing. It was terribly painful and I could not walk. After a few weeks of pain and inability to walk I had surgery. It was day surgery, went home in a couple of hours. Back walking in a few days, no physical therapy required, back dancing in a month. If you are in a lot of pain I would have the surgery.

+1

Mi wife tore hers a couple of years ago. Went to a highly recommended Orthopedic doctor.

Took a MRI and recommended surgery. She had partially shredded hers and there was a flap that was causing a lot of pain. She really didn't want surgery but agreed to proceed.

It's really cool how he did it. They send on a camera through a very small incision and snap before and after pictures. You could see the shredded meniscus and the flap he was talking about.

The after pictures showed everything that was removed and her repaired meniscus. He said they removed about 1/3.

It took a couple of months for my wife to feel secure about getting back to normal.

She hasn't had any issues since then and leads a normal life.

[irishgal]

I tore my meniscus in March 2020. Because of the lock downs, I decided it wasn't "an emergency" so I did not get an official diagnosis until September 2021. They said surgery was the only option. So I decided to get a second opinion. In the meantime I did some at home exercises and kept walking on it. Oddly, it started to improve.

Went for the second opinion and the doctor said that gel injections would likely bring the knee back to close to 100% if not 100%. I will get my first one this week.

I am very active like you are. I hike with my dogs 2 miles daily, I do dog sports, agility, field trials (where we are in the field for 9 hours a day) and more. So, like you I really was not willing to live with it nor did I want to jump into surgery.

Good luck!

[N02L84ER]

I want your time machine. LOL.



"I did not get an official diagnosis until September 2021"

[irishgal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by N02L84ER I want your time machine. LOL. "I did not get an official diagnosis until September 2021"

Oh sheesh.
September 2020 doh!

[CindyBlue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by irishgal I tore my meniscus in March 2020. Because of the lock downs, I decided it wasn't "an emergency" so I did not get an official diagnosis until September 2021. They said surgery was the only option. So I decided to get a second opinion. In the meantime I did some at home exercises and kept walking on it. Oddly, it started to improve. Went for the second opinion and the doctor said that gel injections would likely bring the knee back to close to 100% if not 100%. I will get my first one this week. I am very active like you are. I hike with my dogs 2 miles daily, I do dog sports, agility, field trials (where we are in the field for 9 hours a day) and more. So, like you I really was not willing to live with it nor did I want to jump into surgery. Good luck!

Thank you for mentioning the gel idea - I'm putting that onto my list of questions to ask! Best of luck to you, too!

I hope you might let me know how the gel treatment goes for you!

P.S - Your dog agility and field trials sound fascinating!