Ruined Knee?

[Kevin Dill]

My friends....

While in Alaska this past September I injured my right knee. The pain was instant and severe. After returning home I was seen by an orthopedist who diagnosed it as a likely medial meniscus tear. I did physical therapy and medications without improvement. It's been 3 months since the injury and I had an MRI performed this morning. The report says:

1. Complex tear of the medial meniscus involving the posterior horn and body.
2. Possible tear extension into the anterior horn.
3. Suspected partial tear of the MCL.
4. Joint effusion and edema.

Now, I have no problem understanding what this means in terms of medical language, anatomy, and the overall problem(s) within the knee. I have a return appt to discuss surgery (most likely) or other strategy on 1-4. Before then I'm trying to gain additional insight as to my options. My 2 main concerns are pain relief and preserving knee function consistent with my lifestyle. I'm here wondering if any 'sliders have personal experiences or knowledge they might share.

Thanks!

 

[Ross]

Sorry to hear that…..my own brief experiences….35 yrs ago tore acl with miniscus tear back then they often did not replace acl and I was naive and young…surgery surgeon cleaned things up…rehab wear brace skip ahead 5 yrs having issues meet new surgeon in area avid Hunter…says let’s get you taken care of, acl replaced…lasted 12 yrs then in 04 acl replaced again miniscus clean up again….due to my friend and second surgeon and 13 surgeries have kept it going…..now almost 60…replacement in the near future….moral of story if had been taken care of properly by first surgeon likely another decade left on this knee…miniscus stuff can be trimmed and rehabbed if other things don’t work well and you can be fine for a long time….choose wisely don’t rush things and rehab…sure these are things you know already….just know you can get back to 95% plus percent…..the mental side of our injuries that affect our passion can almost be as bad for a period of time…..good moving forward today’s technology can do wonders in the correct hands

 

[Scoot]

My suggestion-- talk to someone who will know the surgeons at the facility you'll be going to. Don't just accept an appointment with whomever you get paired with. Half of the ortho surgeons are below average ones... Get multiple referrals for someone who is exceptional. Go to him/her and trust in his expertise.

Good luck, Kevin!

 

[Poser]

I experienced a pretty good MCL tear while snowboarding in the backcountry 2 years ago. Since I didn’t have a flap of tissue causing the knee to lock up, I did not pursue surgery. I would say it has healed at 90% or greater. Off piste, steep downhill backpacking (lots of twisting over deadfall and unstable ground) is the only task that can cause inflammation issues. I did several sessions with a PT who worked on getting my brain to “trust” that side of my body again. That actually helped a bit and I think PTs are largely full of shit.

 

[Kevin Dill]

Ross....Heck of a story there. I'm here hoping to prevent a bunch of future surgeries AND continue doing the things I enjoy. Your experiences and advice are well taken.

Scoot: I have a great inside track to the right surgeon. My wife works in the diagnostic testing wing of the clinic. She has the dope on which docs are decent and which are really great. The guy I'm seeing falls into the latter description. He's fairly young and has established an excellent reputation for joint surgery outcomes.

I'll add that I have no intention of handing this decision and my future over to a doc....even one I trust. I intend to go into it with eyes open and full of questions so I can make good decisions.

 

[Will_m]

I experienced a pretty good MCL tear while snowboarding in the backcountry 2 years ago. Since I didn’t have a flap of tissue causing the knee to lock up, I did not pursue surgery. I would say it has healed at 90% or greater. Off piste, steep downhill backpacking (lots of twisting over deadfall and unstable ground) is the only task that can cause inflammation issues. I did several sessions with a PT who worked on getting my brain to “trust” that side of my body again. That actually helped a bit and I think PTs are largely full of shit.

Bummer I thought snowboarding was supposed to be safe for knees. Maybe that’s just compared to skiing?

 

[Packin_packout]

I did a partial tear on mcl and good sized tear on both meniscus when I slipped portaging a canoe few years back. Had the meniscus snipped on one first summer and did the next one following spring. 3 years in no issues. I was extremely lucky to find PT who actually listened to what my definition of healed up was and what I consider normal activity level. Took some work but I am back to my old stupid self of packing elk out by myself. Inflammation on long hike days took about another six months after pt ended to where I could do 15 mile backpack non hunting days w/o swelling. Only issue is still feel unstable for stuff like single leg squats that I used to do. I am not a good reference for doing super heavy loads since I am a stick figure and won't pack more than a bull elk bone in rear quarter plus personal gear whenever possible. I pretty much had to surgery would be walking and flap would catch and my leg would just buckle. Couldn't make it across office without issue.

 

[Firemedic710]

Tore my mcl 10 years ago backcountry snowboarding as well. Didn’t have surgery since I was a uninsured ski bum working for vail. Rehabbed it myself, only thing I can’t do is run on it. Look into stem cell injections, heard real good things but insurance doesn’t normally cover it.

 

[rayporter]

sorry to hear that.

choose wisely is all i can say. i had a tear 2 years ago and they said it would heal- and by golly it did. surprise.

this fall i fell in the snow when some leaves slid down hill as i put wt on my foot. and now i think the other knee is in trouble. my probem was finding a good ortho. they specialize according to your age and the good ones like young football guys.

 

[Ridley]

I’m in my late 40’s and, because of playing sports at a relatively high level for most of my life (varsity soccer starter all four years in high school, started 3 years in college and a number of years in adult competitive leagues well into my 30s) I have had a total of 5 knee surgeries. Both ACLs have been replaced (2 surgeries) and meniscus repair as part of or the whole reason for all surgeries. I can say that having the surgery it sounds like you may have is really no big deal. Recovery is short and pretty easy. If you elect to have surgery and after you finish your physical therapy, stick with it. Get your legs as strong as they can be. That will go the furthest in preventing future injuries and pain.

If you choose not to have surgery and the pain continues or gets worse you may find yourself exercising less and gaining weight. This will put even more stress on your knee and then you will have bigger problems.

I will probably have knee replacement surgeries at some point. At least my physical therapist wife tells me I will. I thinks she secretly wants me to so she can torture me during therapy.

 

[Kevin Dill]

All interesting comments and experiences. I really appreciate it. Nice to have friends in cyberspace.

I've been telling people I'm tired of walking like a peg-legged pirate.

 

[ArcherAdam]

I had meniscus surgery around 10 years ago. I forget the nomenclature however my tear was on the side that does not get blood and will not heal on its own. They shaved 30% of it off and also cleaned up arthritis they found on my knee (scary...I was 32 at the time).

Post surgery was normal with an expected recovery.

What was interesting for me is that to this day some weather fronts (~5x/year) bring me more pain than on the day I injured it. I also "click" a little bit. It makes me wonder if it was worth it since by the time of my surgery date I felt fully recovered. I am sure in the long run it was simply to clean out the arthritis. *fwiw...I never had the weather changing pains before the surgery.

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[CoStick]

Quality of surgeon, condition of knee, quality of PT after all play into it. Try to get the best surgeon and PT, both are really important, it seems you have no issue putting in the work.

 

[4rcgoat]

..... heres to a speedy recovery

 

[DmrbigEshotT]

Sorry to hear. In 2008 I had medial meniscus repair along with ACL reconstruction and an meniscus tear in my other knee in 2018.

I elk hunted for two years with a torn meniscus, but only started to really feel it the second year. It swelled each day and an Advil each night was needed. I elected for arthroscopic surgery in December of 2020 and it still doesn’t feel normal, but does feel better overall.

As far as your MCL, I don’t have much experience with that other than finding a good PT and with their help, come up with a plan to strengthen the surrounding muscles to prevent further injury.

Best of luck.


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[Idaho_Potato]

This thread is nightmare fuel. I'm 34. My left knee is weak due to some minor IT band irritation on that side. Should I chuck my skis in the land fill and never look back? Pick up wolf hunting and give the middle finger to snow sports? Middle age sucks. Everything hurts. Naps feel good. Hangovers happen after beer two. Less than 8 hrs sleep makes for a BS day. Blood pressure is a number on my radar. Coffee is a requirement for life. Kill me now. I don't want to be 70.

 

[JDMBEND]

This thread is nightmare fuel. I'm 34. My left knee is weak due to some minor IT band irritation on that side. Should I chuck my skis in the land fill and never look back? Pick up wolf hunting and give the middle finger to snow sports? Middle age sucks. Everything hurts. Naps feel good. Hangovers happen after beer two. Less than 8 hrs sleep makes for a BS day. Blood pressure is a number on my radar. Coffee is a requirement for life. Kill me now. I don't want to be 70.

Don’t quit. I quit in my 40’s, gained 60#s, two back surgeries, one knee surgery,became a alcoholic, blood pressure and cholesterol off the charts. A walking time bomb. Decided I wanted to live.
Went into treatment, started working out religiously. Changed my diet. Lost all the weight.
Got back into all the things I loved to do in my 20s. Backpack hunt, ski, surf, and travel the world.
63 years old and still do all of the above as much as possible.
If your body and mind are broken find a solution and fix it.
Keep on Moving!

 

[Firemedic710]

Don’t quit check out the knees over toes guy on YouTube and get those knees bulletproof

 

[Poser]

Bummer I thought snowboarding was supposed to be safe for knees. Maybe that’s just compared to skiing?

Probably is in terms of ACLs. I was in a tight Aspen grove and my front tip caught a tree while turning. It caused my body to overrate and the board to counter rotate and that front knee got traumatically twisted. I was only about 200 yards from the Trailhead, but couldn’t ride out. Had to swim on my board which took me 2+ hours to go that distance.

 

[GSPHUNTER]

Torn meniscus repair both knees, check. Detached hamstring ( ask me if that hurt) repair check, torn patella repair, check. Now saw bones wants to do a knee replacement, which I am balking at. I twisted my knee and my Dr. though I might have torn ACL but that's not the case, but surgeon said my right knee is in bad shape. I told him there is zero pain and but for the MRI I would have never suspected there is an issue. I saw the Xray of my knee compared to a healthy knee and ya it looks damn near bone on bone. He told me I just have a high pain tolerance and knee should be replaced. This is the same surgeon who has done a few surgeries on me including both rotators, one of which was open surgery, not arthroscopic, completely detached. I do have faith in This Dr. but............................