WHat is a meniscus tear and do I have it? How bad?

Question

Well, during gym we were playing kneeball (handball on our knees) and the day after my knee started to swell. Now 2 weeks later it just got worse. NOw I am unable to bend my knee or walk on it. I went to the doctor 1 week ago. He said I might have torn a ligament. The orthapidic just sent me home and told me to rest. For the entire weekend i hae been lying in bed. Well not the whole, but a lot. I was doing this because I am unable to walk and I tryed hopping but I fell. What is a meniscus tear and How bad Do you think I have it if I do?

Ps. Have I mensioned that my knee "locks" when I try to straiteen it? What will they do to solve this problem?

Answer 1

A torn meniscus is a tear in the cartilage between the bones of the knee joint. There are two menisci in your knee; each rests between the thigh bone (femur) and shin bone (tibia). The menisci are made of tough cartilage and conform to the surfaces of the bones upon which they rest. One meniscus rests on the medial tibial plateau; this is the medial meniscus. The other meniscus rests on the lateral tibial plateau, the lateral meniscus.

The two most common causes of a meniscus tear are due to traumatic injury (often seen in athletes) and degenerative processes (seen in older patients who have more brittle cartilage). The most common mechanism of a traumatic meniscus tear occurs when the knee joint is bent and the knee is then twisted.

It is not uncommon for the meniscus tear to occur along with injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the medial collateral ligament (MCL)-these three problems occurring together are known as the "unhappy triad," which is seen in sports such as football when the player is hit on the outside of the knee.

What are the symptoms of a meniscus tear?
Individuals who experience a meniscus tear usually experience pain and swelling as their primary symptoms. Another common complaint is joint locking, or the inability to completely straighten the joint. This is due to a piece of the torn cartilage physically impinging the joint mechanism of the knee.

The most common symptoms of a meniscus tear are:

Knee pain
Swelling of the knee
Tenderness when pressing on the meniscus
Popping or clicking within the knee
Limited motion of the knee joint

What treatments are available for a meniscus tear (torn cartilage)?
Almost any knee injury can initially be treated acutely with ice packs, rest, and immobilization. These simple measures will help to decrease swelling and pain in the joint.

Your physician can use information about how the injury occurred and physical examination tests to determine the likelihood of a meniscus tear. While x-rays are usually normal with an isolated meniscus tear, the MRI evaluation will often reveal abnormalities within the meniscus.

Is surgery necessary for meniscus tears?
The next step is to determine whether or not surgery is necessary for a meniscus tear. If an individual is not a good surgical candidate or if their meniscus tear symptoms are not significant, surgery can often be delayed or avoided altogether.

Many people live normal lives despite having a meniscus tear. It is only when the meniscus tear becomes symptomatic, and interferes with activities, that surgery to treat the meniscus tear should be considered.
There are generally two surgical options for treating a meniscus tear:

Meniscus Repair
A meniscus repair is a surgical procedure done to repair the damaged meniscus. This procedure can restore the normal anatomy of the knee, and has a better long-term prognosis when successful. However, the meniscus repair is a more significant surgery, the recovery is longer, and, because of limited blood supply to the meniscus, it is not always possible.

Meniscectomy
A meniscectomy is a procedure to remove the torn portion of the meniscus. This procedure is far more commonly performed than a meniscus repair. Most meniscus tears cannot be treated by a repair for a number of reasons. Often the tear is in an avascular region of the meniscus, and will not heal even if repaired. Some tears are frayed and cannot be sutured together. In these cases, the meniscectomy is done to remove the damaged portion of meniscus. The meniscectomy has a faster recovery, but it can lead to trouble years down the road because of the absence of the normal meniscus.

Answer 2

meniscus (plural: menisci, from the Greek for "crescent") is a curve in the surface of a liquid and is produced in response to the surface of the container or another object. It can be either concave or convex. A convex meniscus occurs when the molecules of the liquid repel the molecules of the container or object. This may be seen between mercury and glass in barometers. Conversely, a concave meniscus occurs when the molecules of the liquid attract those of the container. This can be seen between water and glass. Surface tension acts on concave menisci to pull the liquid up, and on convex menisci to pull the liquid down. This phenomenon is important in transpirational pull.

When reading a scale on the side of a container filled with liquid, the meniscus must be taken into account in order to obtain an accurate measurement.

Answer 3

Your symptoms are not an exact with my symptoms when I had a torn miniscus. If you were pivoting and turning on your knee, that might have caused the tear. You can see whether there has been a tear with an MRI. Below is a more comprehensive discussion of miniscu problems.

Answer 4

Follow the orthopedic's instructions to the letter and do a follow-up visit. Stop trying to self-diagnose. Joint injuries (especially weight bearing) need the attention of an expert and plenty of time to heal.