[quote=sdrealtor]Thanx, I went to the dr yesterday and he prescribed some anti-inflammatory medicine that has made a huge difference. I already regained a ton of flexibility. MRI on Monday. Keeping my fingers crossed its a minor tear.[/quote]
Good luck, sdr. Don’t know if it will make you feel any better, but if you’re destined to screw up your knee in some way, a meniscal tear, in most cases, is the one associated with the least morbidity. There are loads of people walking around, leading very active lives with meniscal tears in one or both knees. I sustained tears in both lateral menisci in my early 20s; the only time they’ve ever caused any significant pain is when I’m bearing weight on a hyperflexed joint, particularly when I’m on my hands and knees (and no comments from the more “traditional” males in the peanut gallery….I don’t scrub my floors often, but when I do, I want to make sure they’re really clean!)
Naturally, there are widely varying degrees of tears. If a tear is located in an area that allows the meniscus to get “caught” between the bones of the joint, it can not only cause significant pain, but serious difficulty with walking (many patients complain of their knee “giving way”). The menisci are often described as “knee cartilage”, but, while meniscal tissue is cartilagenous in its composition, the menisci are actually semilunar-shaped pads that function as shock absorbers. They protect the long bones in the knee joint (femur & tibia) from the shock of repeatedly pounding against each other. So, while they really help in keeping your knee joint comfortable and stable, an injury to them will not prove to be as great an impediment to joint function as damage to the articular cartilage and collateral/ cruciate ligaments would be. That’s why I said that a tear of the meniscus is preferable to just about any other type of knee injury.
The MRI will provide a highly detailed picture and a definitive diagnosis. If there’s a tear, ask the doctor to show you exactly where it’s at. If he/she recommends surgery, ask if there’s a problem with a limited course of conservative treatment (rest & elevation of the limb, antiinflammatories). There are cases where the tear is severe and can impede walking, but that doesn’t sound like you are experiencing that. You may luck out, and have no tear, or a small one that, once the initial inflammation (which is the body’s way of protecting an injured area from risk of further trauma) goes away, will cause you no additional problems.
People respond differently to surgical treatment, and the factors involved are not always controllable. However, the one thing under your control is your choice of surgeon (if you are not restricted to health insurer-designated providers). My recommendation is to find someone who specializes in arthroscopic joint surgery, preferably one who superspecializes in lower extremity pathology. Recovery time and outcome can depend on a variety of factors, among them whether they are simply excising a small portion of the meniscus (usually fairly straightforward), or performing a meniscal repair (can be a lot more detailed). The importance of postoperative physical therapy and rehab cannot be overemphasized. Again, your positive response to the antiinflammatory meds and rest are, hopefully, indicative of a favorable prognosis with the possibility of no surgical intervention.
