Torn Meniscus on my left knee?
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The question of surgery as explained to me was based on the severity of the tear (size of the flap of lose cartilage) and the degree to which it impedes the joint.
I was recently diagnosed with a torn meniscus and they had me do physical therapy for about 1 month to see if - after the inflammation went down - the tear might not create too much trouble. The MRI was not really clear but seemed to indicate a meniscus tear, and the physical examination seemed to indicate a meniscus tear. All in all, I was told that a meniscus tear can be very hard to diagnose, and that they can't always be sure that is what is wrong. But if it is, my research indicated that it was a very wise idea to get the surgery because the recovery is quick and without it your pain may not go away completely.
After the physical therapy I was still having problems so they decided to go in and scope it. I spoke to many people who had gone though the surgery etc. and they said the improvement was miraculous. I was looking forward to getting repaired and being back to normal.
The flap of torn cartilage can catch in the joint as you move and cause awful pain, but, don't avoid the physical therapy, because the muscle atrophy I got from favoring the bad knee caused me much of my post-surgery pain. In the end when they did the scope, they found that my meniscus was fine and I had a partial ACL tear instead...so they "cleaned up" the knee and sent me back to physical therapy. As a result, it was 2 month from injury to surgery and 2 months since then, and I am getting back to my life - mainly rebuilding my lost muscles.
if it is torn it most likely will need surgery to a) repair the damage and b) to remove torn tissue to prevent stiffness later. Either way, they will most likely use a scope. In the end, 2 or 3 weeks later you should start seeing a huge improvement.
if you need the surgery, I would do it. But my mom had this same problem and it went away over time. Good luck!
you need surgery if it is a damaged meniscus... I damaged mine, along with 2 ligaments in the knee 6 months ago (just had the surgery). the surgery involved is very simple, I had arthoscopic, day surgery, 3 puncture sites on knee area... good luck
If you do have any type of meniscus tear and are young and would like to stay active, then you should have surgery to have it repaired. The movement in your knee will keep catching it and eventually tear it completely. They don't normally heal back on their own.
Have the surgery done. The darn thing is not going to get any better and will never heal on its own. It will only get worse with time. I have had three seperate operations on both of my knees and I would do it all over again if I had to. Imagine clipping your nail half way off, and just having dangling around. That is the same thing with the torn meniscus. It needs to be clipped off. Expect one to three months for recovery.
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