Arthoscopic Surgery For Torn Meniscus

It's very common for professional and amateur athletes, both male and female, to suffer knee related injuries. Probably the most well-known and debilitating has got to be a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) which runs vertically through the knee and serves to stabilize the knee. The next most common injury is a torn meniscus, which is what people sometimes refer to as having 'torn cartilage' in their knee.

To repair a torn ACL, the surgeon will actually remove the damaged ACL completely and replace it with a donor from a cadaver.

The meniscus is C-shaped and has a wedge shaped profile which allows it to fit smoothly between the bones of the leg both when straight or bent. There are two 'menisci' in the knee, they are made from tough cartilage that conform to the shape of the bones and act as a buffer to distribute the weight of the body evenly across the knee. Without the meniscus the bones would rub against each other causing significant wear and pain.

Because the meniscus must be strong enough to withstand the constant stress put upon it by the bones of the leg it only has direct blood supply to the outer edge and no direct blood supply to the central section. The central section of the meniscus is much firmer than the outer edge and able to withstand the stresses placed upon it. If it were all directly supplied with blood it would be much softer and wear out much more quickly.

If there is a tear in the central section of the meniscus it will not heal even if sewn together, it must be removed. Very rarely the tear is along the outer edge and can be repaired with stitches.

One interesting and not well known fact about a meniscus tear is that they aren't always caused by a single event, but start out slowly and get worse over time. A small tear might not even be noticeable to the patient, or may cause slight discomfort at times. As the injury continues to have stress applied to it, the tear will slowly grow over time until such time that it causes enough pain that the patient seeks medical attention.

There are several different ways to deal with a damaged meniscus, which range from non-surgical injections of cortisone, repairing it by stitching the tear together, cutting off and removing the torn section and complete removal of the meniscus itself.

Non-surgical repair of the injury will have the lowest chance of complication and the fastest recovery time. Complete removal of the meniscus is the most drastic solution, and over time there will be increased stress and wear placed on the bones. The patient will do well at first, but over time will develop arthritis in the affected knee and may even need more care in the future.

Once it's been determined that the patient needs to have surgery, the Doctor may schedule an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) to get a better look inside the structure of the knee for damage. The MRI may come back 'negative' and not actually show anything wrong, so the only way to find the damage will be to proceed with the surgery anyway.

The photo here shows the doctors initials at the top of the knee; there will be several checks before the surgery to be certain that the correct leg will be operated on. Also seen are the two incision sites and the yellow coloring of the disinfectant containing iodine used to clean the leg before surgery. Both the doctors initials and the iodine stain remain on the leg for a few days to a week.

The surgery for a torn meniscus can usually be completed within only one hour, and the patient can choose between a general or a local anesthetic. Usually the local anesthetic is chosen, and the patient is discharged within an hour or two of the completed operation.

On average, the patient should expect discomfort and pain for at least the first 3-5 days, and this pain can be kept in check with prescription pain medicine. During this time the incision site needs to be kept clean and dry to avoid possible infection, and should not be immersed in water.

During the first day or two the patient should expect there to be liquid being discharged from the wound as well. This liquid is saline solution that was injected into the knee to make the surgery easier.

The day after surgery the patient may start stretching and exercising the affected knee to speed the recovery of the wound. The knee must be used as much as possible as quickly as possible, so that it recovers fully and there aren't long term negative effects. Possible problems are not being able to fully bend or straighten properly to constant stiffness or discomfort.

It's very likely that having undergone this surgery the patient will make a full and speedy recovery with little to no harmful side effects.

I don't have any other medical hubs, but I do have some all about digital camera repair that you may be interested in as well.