Post meniscectomy knee recovery?

[grfox92]

I am 9 weeks post surgery on my left knee. Had a bucket handle tear in my meniscus. I walked on it for a week before I finally broke down and had it looked at. By that point, the damage was done, and there was no option for repair as I had pulverised the torn area by walking on it. So when they got in there with the scope, the only option was to cut out the affected area. I was told from the day of surgery that I was "weight and range of motion as tolerated." I am not at risk for re injuring this injury as nothing was repaired, and material was just removed.

The surgeon said I had a good rim left around the knee and only removed and cleaned up the affected area. I did PT but after 2 weeks, discontinued because all we were doing was strength and conditioning exercises for my legs and knee that I do regularly anyway and it was costing way too much money in Co pays.

I have elk hunted every weekend since August 15th (3 weeks post op) and at no point in the mountains would I say that me knee "hurt". I would say I could feel my knee more so than experienced pain. When I switched from running shoes to my stiff Kenetreks, I could feel my knee much more as my ankle wasn't absorbing the terrain and the ankle support was transferring most of the load to my knees. But over all, i felt good and confident.

Fast forward to today. I did my first run as I start training for an Ultra Marathon in June. After 100 yards my knee hurt, after 1/4 mile it was painful and I stopped. I will switch to en elliptical at the gym for now.

Im curious for those of you who have had meniscus surgery, how long until you were 100%. The doctor told me that with a tear as severe as I had, he cant guarantee I will have a normal knee going forward but with how quickly I recovered and how active I've been, I wasn't expecting what I experienced this morning.

I really was hoping to run my first ultra this year and am hoping that the impact of running isn't going to be my limiting factor post recovery.

Any insight is appreciated.

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[sndmn11]

I really was hoping to run my first ultra this year and am hoping that the impact of running isn't going to be my limiting factor post recovery.

I am 41, 25lbs of dad bod overweight, but still sexy.

I had 6 meniscus surgeries between 2005 and 2007; partial meniscectomies and one failed repair. In 2019 I had another partial. The first was on my left and the remainder, including the failed repair, were all on my right.

I never was into running at any point in my life until 2022, and I now run 3-10 miles per day most weekdays. I have no pain at all now and never think about my knees. My relevant history was baseball (catcher) through college, active with weights and sprints/short runs for cardio, physically demanding job until 2020 including a handful of patrol years in LE.

I had so many surgeries in college because the prevailing thoughts then were that partial meniscectomies had no healing to do other than pushing the swelling out. I was back to playing at 2-3 weeks each time (other than the failed repair), but this last one was different. I had very different PT that was focused on "remodeling the joint" with lame small movements, rather than muscle atrophy and biking to get get out swelling.

My layman's opinion is that you have lived a running life with an intact knee cushion, and now that has changed. Your body will be trying to figure it out and with as much of a running history you have as a barometer, it will be 6-9 months before your body lets you forget about it.

 

[nodakian]

I had a bucket handle tear from a snowmobiling incident in 2004. It didn't bother me, so i didn't get surgery. In 2013, i got back into running and hiking, but by late 2023, things deteriorated to where I could not run more than 5 steps.

Things feel better after surgery in Feb 2024. I do strength training and whatnot, but my running days are over, and walking down stairs and steep terrain requires slow, conscious effort to avoid the stabbing pain. It is better than it was, but reduced mobility sucks.

I hope you get better results. It seems like the variables between people's situations make predicting outcomes pretty tricky. Athletic type and intensity at various ages, severity of injury, age at surgery, diet, etc. Good luck.

 

[grfox92]

I am 41, 25lbs of dad bod overweight, but still sexy.

I had 6 meniscus surgeries between 2005 and 2007; partial meniscectomies and one failed repair. In 2019 I had another partial. The first was on my left and the remainder, including the failed repair, were all on my right.

I never was into running at any point in my life until 2022, and I now run 3-10 miles most weekdays. I have no pain at all now and never think about my knees. My relevant history was baseball (catcher) through college, active with weights and sprints/short runs for cardio, physically demanding job until 2020 including a handful of patrol years in LE.

I had so many surgeries in college because the prevailing thoughts then were that partial meniscectomies had no healing to do other than pushing the swelling out. I was back to playing at 2-3 weeks each time (other than the failed repair), but this last one was different. I had very different PT that was focused on "remodeling the joint" with lame small movements, rather than muscle atrophy and biking to get get out swelling.

My layman's opinion is that you have lived a running life with an intact knee cushion, and now that has changed. Your body will be trying to figure it out and with as much of a running history you have as a barometer, it will be 6-9 months before your body lets you forget about it.

Great info, thank you.

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[Baddog]

basically did the same as you have. I can no longer run regularly, no cushion basically in the knee anymore. Obviously how much they actually carved will dictate if you can or not.

 

[yfarm]

Had a partial tear of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus in 2019, knee ortho recommended no surgery just use a 360 brace. Said my running days are over. He said to avoid anything that produces a joint effusion as the effusion contains substances that accelerate arthritis.
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs)
MMPs are a family of proteolytic enzymes that break down the ECM. In healthy joints, their activity is tightly regulated, but in arthritis, their production increases and their inhibitors are overwhelmed, leading to net degradation of cartilage.
6 yrs out I wear the brace when doing activities that load weight on that part of the joint, weight on one leg and rotate causes pain. Steep stairs require placing both feet on each step going up. Why haven’t I had surgery, with the meniscus gone there is no cushion for the articular cartilage which should accelerate cartilage loss until you are bone on bone. That eventually leads to a total knee replacement. I do have a friend post bilateral knee replacement who climbs mountains but does not run. I bike 12 miles daily. Think about the shock loads on your articular cartilage as you run with each step. Choose wisely, its your only body.

 

[Schism]

I had a partial meniscectomy a couple years ago at about age 40. The orthopedist said it might be up to a year before I'm healed enough to forget that I had surgery. My recovery was pretty quick (couple months) and my knee is currently at 95% of pre surgery condition.

I have young kids and have no problem playing soccer or football with them in the yard. Before surgery, kicking a ball was excruciating. Knowing that the amount of cushioning in my knee isn't what it used to be I try to stick to elliptical machines and biking for cardio. The only time my knee gives me any issues is when hiking long downhill stints with a heavy pack. After that type of activity I'll notice mild swelling and stiffness in the affected knee. I tend to listen to what my body is telling me and adjust activities accordingly.

I dealt with a torn meniscus for over a year before surgery. Post surgery I found strength training to be very beneficial likely due to favoring that knee or altering my gait due to pain. A good friend is an orthopod and made the suggestion that keeping my leg muscles strong will help support and align my knee.

 

[grfox92]

basically did the same as you have. I can no longer run regularly, no cushion basically in the knee anymore. Obviously how much they actually carved will dictate if you can or not.

Yea im optimistic as they didn't remove the whole thing and I have a rim in excess of 6mm.

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