Therapy of the meniscus tear

Synonyms

Meniscal lesion, meniscus tear, meniscus tear, meniscus rupture, meniscus damage

English: meniscus tear

Conservative or operative therapy?

There are several ways to get one Meniscal tear to treat.
Which of the therapy options is used depends on a number of factors. These are the most decisive factors that influence the choice of treatment Age, of the General condition and that caused by the meniscus tear Suffering of the patient. The individual wishes of the person affected are also of great importance, which is why the doctor should always inform his patient about all the possibilities before starting therapy and then decide together with him which way under the special given circumstances the best result with a minimal burden of the therapy he brings.

In principle, a meniscus tear can be either conservative (i.e. without surgery) or surgically to treat. The aim of every treatment is to eliminate or at least alleviate pain and to restore or maintain as unrestricted mobility as possible in the knee joint.

Appointment with a knee specialist?

I would be happy to advise you!

Who am I?
My name is dr. Nicolas Gumpert. I am a specialist in orthopedics and the founder of .
Various television programs and print media report regularly about my work. On HR television you can see me every 6 weeks live on "Hallo Hessen".
But now enough is indicated ;-)

The knee joint is one of the joints with the greatest stress.

Therefore, the treatment of the knee joint (e.g. meniscus tear, cartilage damage, cruciate ligament damage, runner's knee, etc.) requires a lot of experience.
I treat a wide variety of knee diseases in a conservative way.
The aim of any treatment is treatment without surgery.

Which therapy achieves the best results in the long term can only be determined after looking at all of the information (Examination, X-ray, ultrasound, MRI, etc.) be assessed.

You can find me in:

• Lumedis - your orthopedic surgeon
  Kaiserstrasse 14
  60311 Frankfurt am Main

Directly to the online appointment arrangement
Unfortunately, it is currently only possible to make an appointment with private health insurers. I hope for your understanding!
Further information about myself can be found at Dr. Nicolas Gumpert

Pain medication

If there is only a slight sign of wear on a meniscus or minimal tears (so-called microtraumas), which do not cause any discomfort to the patient, one can wait for treatment, as this often recovers completely by itself and the knee completely returns relatively quickly without medical intervention becomes operational. However, the leg should definitely be immobilized, preferably in a flexed position, as the knee joint must not be stressed. As a result, crutches must also be used when walking. This relief usually lasts for 3 to 4 weeks, if the symptoms have not improved over this period, you should consider taking other measures. Another important part of conservative therapy is patient education. Patients should be informed about the natural course of their injury and how they can best counteract it. This includes avoiding movements that put stress on the joints, such as any sports that involve rapid changes of direction (e.g. football or skiing) or remaining in a deep crouch. In addition, it makes sense for the doctor or a physiotherapist to show the person affected some exercises that serve to strengthen the muscles (especially those of the thigh) and which the patient can ideally perform alone at home. Electrotherapy can be used to support this physiotherapy. In this form of treatment, electrical stimuli are used specifically to promote blood circulation in the irritated area, relax muscles and ultimately improve pain. Cooling the knee joint can also relieve pain. In addition, various drugs can be used as part of conservative therapy. These primarily fulfill two tasks, namely, on the one hand, to reduce pain and, on the other, to contain an inflammatory reaction.First of all, anti-inflammatory pain relievers from the anti-rheumatic category (non-steroidal anti-rheumatics = NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen should be used. If the desired effect cannot be achieved as a result, the doctor either uses preparations that contain cortisone (also an anti-inflammatory, but which has a stronger effect, but also has more side effects) or even local anesthetics that directly affect the affected person Knee joint can be injected into it.

Read more on the subject at: Pain medication - the basis of drug pain treatment

Conservative therapy is particularly suitable for elderly people or those who do not need to quickly regain a properly functioning knee joint and for whom great stress on the knee joint is unlikely. If the joint is heavily stressed, a previously damaged knee is at high risk that the meniscus will tear further and free joint components can form, which then come to rest in the knee joint and thus lead to a complete restriction of movement.

surgery

Accordingly, people who are active in sports should definitely get a surgery undergo to Consequential damage to avoid. Overall, the surgical procedure is used more often because the menisci have an extremely important function as buffer in the knee joint and have a good long-term life quality can usually only be achieved with the help of an operation.

There are various options for the operation, but all of them aim to preserve as much healthy meniscus tissue as possible. A meniscus refixation (also: meniscus suturing) can be carried out, in which the meniscus remains in the knee joint and is only "repaired" or a partial or complete resection of the meniscus can be carried out. In rare cases a meniscus replacement with a transplant may be necessary.

The aftercare

The follow-up treatment after the operation also depends on the original extent of the damage in the case of a meniscus tear, but of course also on the selected surgical procedure.
The most common method, the arthroscopic removal the torn parts, loading is possible in principle immediately after the operation.

As long as there is pain, the movement should be started with the help of forearm crutches. For approx. 5-7 days only partial loading of the knee can be carried out.
Especially if mobility is limited at the beginning, a Thrombosis prophylaxis done with stockings or medication.
If the other condition allows it, physiotherapy can be started immediately. This is particularly important as the damaged meniscus can no longer properly perform its support and buffer function.

Therefore, building muscle is a prerequisite for maintaining the stability of the knee joint after the operation. In addition, by strengthening the muscles, further knee damage is prevented.
In addition, the movement exercises restore the mobility of the knee. Especially if you have waited some time with the operation, a relieving posture may have arisen that has to be broken.

Own exercises and sport can also be started depending on the pain situation. It works best for this To go biking on an exercise bike. Running should be done first after about 6 weeks to be resumed. Became the meniscus sewn, the healing process takes longer.
Physiotherapy should be started more slowly here. Sports should only be practiced again after 4-6 months. Here is the knee after the OP initially supplied with splints to prevent excessive movement.
A functional splint that only allows certain degrees of movement can then be used. This prevents excessive flexion or extension from damaging the fresh meniscus suture.

In addition to building muscle, there are various measures that can improve the healing process after both surgical methods. This includes doing this several times a day Cooling the knee. Also, taking anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Ibuprofen, Voltaren® or others. Also one Lymphatic drainage can speed up healing.
In addition to relieving the pain itself, painkillers also help by moving the knee faster. In this case, it makes sense because it prevents relieving posture. After surgery, you should never simply want to endure pain without medication