Meniscus Tear - Advice Needed

[Fonkie]

I’ve had both my knees done. Don’t screw around waiting & knee braces will not help in any way because it’s not structural. Get it done,take a couple weeks off work & do physical therapy if available & you will be back to doing what you want in 6-8 weeks. The alternative is a stiff & painful knee that will flare up horribly just when you don’t want it to. Been there done that!

 

[aion2come]

Thanks everyone. Surgery was yesterday and, while sore from the surgery, I can already feel a difference just putting some weight on it. We'll see how it feels in a couple weeks. The Dr. said the arthritis (which they thought was minimal based on the MRI) was actually quite extensive and much worse than expected. Meniscus tear was about what they thought. He did say that I'll have to be smart going forward. I'm planning on hitting rehab like a big dog and doing all I can to minimize high impact things other than those amazing mountains!

So, any low impact exercise tips to focus on would be great (weight and cardio). Also, which to avoid. I'm sure I'll here it from the Dr. and physical therapists, but having brothers who have walked this before me giving me advice would be much appreciated.

 

[sont5413]

*I am NOT a doctor. I have done a fair amount of my own research because I have had meniscus issues.

I have been dealing with a meniscus issue the past year and a half stemming from a grappling injury. I had a "horizontal cleavage tear" without any locking. My tear was not too severe, however, it was aching far more than I liked. I recently had a meniscectomy. For me, it's too early to tell if it was a good idea. I tweaked it about two months ago and the inflammation has slowly been coming down. As far as I know, stem cell treatments do not have a lot of data to show that they are a good option at this point. Good luck.

 

[WBT]

I suffered what was described as "severe tears" in the meniscus in my left knee several years ago. I was in my early 30s at the time. At any rate, I had surgery in mid-August and was able to go on a mountain goat hunt in October.

My recollection is that I was pretty mobile within a few weeks, but I lost a lot of the flexibility I had pre-surgery. That didn't come back for many, many months. The surgeon gave me a stretching routine that I didn't follow. I started the routine, but it hurt and I felt like my knee was going to explode. Had I followed it, I'm sure the flexibility would have come back much sooner.

 

[MOSO 300]

Stem cell injections... some of best money I’ve ever spent. Doesn’t mask an injury, or trim away your tear. I tore mine right down the middle from the horn half way around. I would personally recommend the therapy with multiple rounds of injections but talk to the doc.


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[ZDR]

Stem cell injections... some of best money I’ve ever spent. Doesn’t mask an injury, or trim away your tear. I tore mine right down the middle from the horn half way around. I would personally recommend the therapy with multiple rounds of injections but talk to the doc.


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Can you say a bit more about the stem cell injections? HOw have they helped you? Do you know if you had any meniscus regrowth etc?

 

[shredder97]

My free advice? Don't shy away from surgery. I tore mine as well and had surgery done. Now, if I'm packing a heavy load and I start thinking about my knees, it's always the uningured one that starts bothering me first.

 

[aion2come]

So a quick reflection on surgery now that the season 1 month away. First of all, the "catching" I had and the sharp pain is gone. Thank you God! For that reason alone, the surgery was worth it. I would do it again. But, the surgeon removed a lot of bad arthritis and took things almost to the bone in one area. The result is that 3 months after surgery and having completed physical therapy, my knee is still swollen (it likely will always be). The knee just feel odd and while I can move freely, there is a price if I overdo it. But ... headed to the backcountry anyway. Will get a shot in the knee before I leave and be taking prescription anti-inflammatories and pray for the best.

All that to say that I would do surgery again, but it is important to realize that your knee may not ever be the same.. Even, with a great Dr. (mine was the former ortho surgeon for the MN Timberwolves), you aren't guaranteed 100% return to normal.

I'll be checking out the stem cell therapy. That sounds intriguing. Happy hunting everyone!

 

[Bighunt531]

Do the surgery my doc said my meniscus looked like a cat shredded it had the scope surgery and never better only took a few weeks to feel back in action

 

[Moose10]

So I just got an MRI on my knee and have a very minor tear. It doesn’t bother me 95% of the time so am trying to avoid surgery.

I was just wondering what everyones physical therapy routine/recovery looked like in case I do opt for surgery

 

[Agross]

If it doesn't bother you 95 percent of the time, don't do the surgery. They had me try pt before the surgery. That did absolutely nothing. So I had the surgery. Two days of crutches and about a month of taking it easy after. That was two years ago. The surgery helped a little but I am back to it bothering me almost every day. In your situation , the pt before having to do surgery might help.

 

[Moose10]

If it doesn't bother you 95 percent of the time, don't do the surgery. They had me try pt before the surgery. That did absolutely nothing. So I had the surgery. Two days of crutches and about a month of taking it easy after. That was two years ago. The surgery helped a little but I am back to it bothering me almost every day. In your situation , the pt before having to do surgery might help.

That’s what I figured. I was just worried about hiking around on it knowing it was partially torn.