I have, what I believe is a torn meniscus in my left knee. I figured it's a meniscus because it doesn't get better with time and it bothers me when I accelerate in a particular direction. I wear a brace and it's helping tremendously, also lately I started doing stability/balance excersizes to strengthen the surrounding muscles/tendons. It seems to be working fine. I'm only a rec player and I was wondering if you could suggest some excersizes that could improve my balance and help take the pressure off the bad portion of meniscus by making my knee as stable as possible. The only excersizes I've been doing for that sort of stability basically involve working out my core muscles, and lateral leaps where I land on one foot, balance myself, and push off hard in the opposite direction. Do you think things like lunges would help?
I have the same thing in my left knee! Only thing is I haven't got my MRI results back yet to see if it's a tear.
I'm weary of having any type of surgical intervention because from what I understand, you're very, very likely to develop arthritis after the surgery. Could anyone who's had this procedure done perhaps chime in?
I had the surgery on my right my knee, i dont have any definite signs of arthritis but my knee always hurts when it rains which supposedly has something to with pressure and arthritis, wish i could elaborate but i have no idea. But i used a brace and when it first started and it made me feel better but it never got better, so MRI and a surgery later here i am... After the surgery your on crutches in no time and then they start PT... which since you lose a little muscle mass on your leg they have you do basic leg exercises to get back like muscle mass on your quad with like electro shock therapy type thing, im sure someone knows the scientific term. Then like oliptical machines and bikes... then they started jogging but i stopped going because i thought i could handle a little better pace because we had states coming up, but they said something like after jogging the next step was like cuts and quick maneuvers... Thats the best i can re-cap for you if you have any more questions just keep the thread going and ill check back asap.
Any regrets about going through with the surgery? In all, how long did it take you to be able to play again? How many hours per week do you play? I appreciate your responses.
i dont regret it at all, like my knee was getting to the point that i couldnt run without it hurting, then it started to make my back hurt because i was limping and trying to play... its hard to say how long exactly it took me to get back but like your back on your feet in no time then its all about getting back in shape and strengthening the leg, i have heard different times from different people but it took me a couple months... its just hard because we play soccer and not like baseball but like 6 weeks feeling good and back to normal but i was still worried so i just trained and didnt kick a ball with my right leg.... when i had the surgery i was playing like every sunday and 3 to 4 practices in between sometimes games on saturdays too, so alot... now im waiting for college ball soo im just training alot and it rarely hurts but sometimes i just get pains in both my knees.... Good luck, keep the questions coming.... if im not clear on anything just let me know and keep posting.
So you do play a lot...that's great. At this point I can't play more then a few hours per week because the knee starts to ache...but you say, you lost muscle mass in your thigh...was it really that bad? Do you think it could be avoided by doing a lot of weight training for your legs before the surgery? I'm planning on having this surgery sometime in the late fall, so I don't miss the prime playing months. but anyway, what you're saying sounds great. As far, technique and mobility, were you able to get them up to pre-injury levels?
Another option is just rest...I mean run and do strengthening, but playing can be be problematic. I am pretty sure I tore my right meniscus about a year ago (that was the general consensus of doctors/physios but they never actually confirmed it). I stayed off of it for the most part for about 9 months and it's completely fine now. I've played for the last three months with no issues. If you play you just risk tearing it further if you happen to twist it on land on it wrong. Just sitting around can get pretty frustrating though, I'll admit.
I tore my meniscus and had surgery to repair it. I was similiar to others in this thread where I thought that I could rest, work out, etc. to combat the problem. It does not work. Took me more than a year to give in. The meniscus is used as a cushioning mechanisim. A brace should not improve anything unless it helps ease the hard blows (but that seems unlikely). Brace are generally for lateral movements fo teh mcl and acl injuries. I recommend the surgeury. Your time off the field is substantally less than a acl or mcl injury and you should go back to full playing strength in a couple of months. When I had my surgery the removed the entire meniscus. More recently doctors shave the meniscus as they found it helps prevent arthritus in the long time. Arthritus worries are not for the short term but later in life. The removal of the miniscus increases risk of arthritus for the long term and will very rarely be noticable in the short term. Even if the meniscus is completely removed (as is mine) the fluid in your need still works as sufficient cushioning. No worries about the surgery...it is well worth it.
i agree with euromut.... my doctor said it wasnt going to get better by itself and surgery was necessary. As for training before the surgery i dont see why that wouldnt work as long as it dosent make the meniscus any worse, but its inevitable that your gonna lose some... Mine wasnt bad at all its just weird getting your legs back... I would say I'm back to normal but like when you first start playing again i didnt think i was but i am now, its hard to say when exactly i felt completly back but im sure with the right attitude and work ethic you will be back in no time. Mine was so bad i couldnt put it off any longer, but good luck.
I am a bit older than most of you (I think), at 42. In the last three years I have had both knees fixed for torn medial meniscus, couple of points: - It will NOT heal itself, however strengthening the muscles that stablize the knee can help. However once torn, it will be likely to continue to tear further. - They scope it to fix it and on both of mine, they basically cut out the tear, smoothing the edges so there's nothing left to tear. I was walking without crutches within 24 hours. The issue walking was not pain, but the inability to bend my leg. I had some slight pain in the first 24 hours but nothing to take anything stronger then advil. They told me 6-8 weeks to 100%. For a younger guy, in shape and willing to push it with the PT, you should be back on the field in several weeks, not at 100%, but playing in 4-6 weeks. You don't loose muscle mass, but you do have to "wake up" the muscles again. the mass will be there, it will just not be capable of doing much, this is what the PT is for. My PT went something like: - bikes, squats, lateral moves and other excercises to wake up the quads. - balance exercises (standing on a half a ball with a board on it and have the PT throw 3 lb balls at me to play catch.) One knee feels great, the other I still feel it when I over due it. Might just be age, but I can't squat down (like a catcher in baseball) all the way any longer. Not sure if this is just my knees getting older or a side effect of the surgery, or both). Get the MRI, if its torn, fix it. If you can deal with discomfort until the offseason this might be an option. Mine where to the point where when I came home from reffing 2-3 games I would sit on the couch in pain and have to ice the knee.
Both my son and I have had a torn meniscus in the past 1 1/2 years, and I can say, that through Physical Therapy, the torn meniscus HAS healed itself. I am 46, my son 17. It took about 3-4 weeks. The doctor explained to me that by doing exercises, the meniscus can "glue" itself back together " in some cases", not all.It worked for both of us. If you have a "clicking" in your knee, good chance it's your meniscus. They had me do a lot of balancing on that leg, some squats with a ball between my knees going up against a wall with my back to the wall, leg extensions, step ups, riding stationary bike. etc... They also put some stimulation device on my leg muscles, and also did deep tissue heating.
Well I'm going to continue with my balance/stability/strength excersizes until the fall.. I'm not counting on them to fix my meniscus, but I they'll make me more functional. In late fall, I'll really start taking care of the problem and have my company sponsor the surgery. Thanks for your help.
Read up on the meniscus and how/why it tears. It depends on how it's torn/how bad/what part but cartilage doesn't heal itself. Quit doing these self diagnoses and go to a doctor and get checked out properly. Maybe it's not the meniscus at all but a tendon or something, you probably don't know for sure.
My 13 year old tore his meniscus. Deep tear as it turned out. His knee would give way on him if he tried to plant or turn. That would never have fixed itself. He got scoped. Three weeks after the operation, the doctor cleared him to play again. That was one month ago. He now is now in the midst of his spring club season. He is doing fine, although the muscle around the knee is sore from the insertion of the scope and swells up after he plays hard. So he has to ice it and he's not playing any soccer aside from club practices and games.
I've said this a few times today. Unless someone here is an MD, they should not be giving medical advice to someone. Go to a doctor. Preferably an orthopaedist who specializes in knees. If you have insurance, it is likely just an extra co-pay. He or she will be able to tell you what is going on. I'd suggest you don't do any exercise until you do that.
I dunno, I've been progressively playing more and more, and ever since I started strengthening my legs and working on my stability it didn't get any worse. It feels a little wobbly/weak when I play without the brace, but otherwise it's doing pretty good.
I had a 1/4 of my meniscus removed approximately 5 years ago. I took a year off of soccer and focused on strengthing the leg muscles. The type of things people have posted above. Last year I got tackled from behind and started having issues in the same knee. I knew what it was from my previous experience (ie: swelling, pain, limited movement). MRI and doctor confirmed the situation. I was almost ready for surgery to repair a small tear behind the knee cap and scope for other "issues," but decided to hold off and try other non-invasive methods. The doctor suggested a few things including glucosamine chondroitan. I took religiously and haven't had a problem since. I still can't bend the knee fully back (ie: sit on my haunches) but the pain and swelling is gone. I use a sleeve during play but am not sure I need anylonger. My advice, get on a long term glucosamine chondroitan plan. From the conversations with doctors and friends, it takes a long time to build up the amounts to be effective. I've been taking for almost 9 months but think there was noticable benefit after 4-5 months. I've also heard that fish oil helps with lubricating joints but don't have personal experience there. Now I'm dealing with turf toe, any advice for me? Change to stiffer cleats? Inserts? I'm at what my doctor tells me is stage 3 of 4. This means I don't have to fuse the bone and can try pain preventative steps. I'm researching what I need to do. Good luck.