Anyone gone thru assessment and treatment for a medial meniscus tear (confirmed on MRI)? I have a surgeon's recommendation for arthroscopy repair but would appreciate another opinion from sports medicine wizard, etc. Suggestions or referrals (Manhattan)? Thanks!
Meniscus tear??
Wed, 01/11/2006 - 2:27pm
Wed, 01/11/2006 - 5:37pm
#1
Anterior Meniscus
I had an anterior meniscus tear and had the arthroscopic surgery (this was about 5 1/2 years ago). Because I was already in good condition and had good muscle tone, I recovered quite quickly. I was back on the bike, indoors on a trainer, on the 10th day after surgery and back outdoors on the bike about 3 weeks after surgery. I did work very hard on my rehab in order to ensure a full recovery. Since the surgery I have had very little pain associated with that knee (other than arthritis, which is a different problem).
Dr. Frank Cordasco with Hospital for Special Surgery on the east side did my surgery. Dr. Phillip Bauman on the west side is also excellent for knees (many Broadway dancers use him).
Wed, 01/11/2006 - 8:52pm
#2
MRI on knee
Don't assume just because the MRI shows an Meniscus tear that you really have one. Surgeons love to operate--that ALL they do!! My MRI showed an Meniscus tear--a bucket handle anterior tear of the horn to be exact. Truth is... 8% of all MRI's ARE wrong. Get 3-4 opinions from the best Drs. you can find. I did rehab for a few months and recovered from a bad bike crash that injured my knee.
Thu, 01/12/2006 - 6:58am
#3
Or, it could be something else causing the pain . . .
"I too had an MRI which showed a tear -- if I recall, a Grade 3 tear of the ""posterior horn of the medial meniscus."" This was more than 10 years ago and I was advised to give up running (oh, and have surgery). I never had any surgery, and since then have completed multiple marathons and ironmans, and am actually running better than I ever have."
Thu, 01/12/2006 - 10:56am
#4
Hello David,
I took a very conservative approach towards surgery. See my story below.
I injured my knee while jogging. I tried alternative methods of recovery-- using a variety of supplements prescribed by my Alternative Doctor, seeing a Chiropractor for ‘adjustment’ and an Osteopath for analysis and readjustment. There was a confluence of opinion that it could be healed without sugery.
I also went to an Orthopaedist, Dr. David Weiss. He suggested I try to live with my torn meniscus to see if I could avoid surgery and also prescribed Physical Therapy to build-up the soft tissue around the knee. I gave it a 2 year trial but found the meniscus would ‘catch’ when I turned. At the end of the 2 years I tried to play tennis and re-injured my knee. My eventual goal was to play tennis again, so I finally concluded I needed surgery.
I did a lot of exercises before the procedure to build-up the area around my knee. My recovery was very quick-- about a week-- and it has been strong ever since.
The other knee was injured about 2 years later with the same problem. I built-up my knee with the exercises I learned from the previous Physical Therapy and rode my bike. I had surgery a month later. My recovery was even quicker the second time-- I was on my bike the next day, took no pain-killers and never used any supporting devices-- like a cane. Again a fine result.
The Orthopaedist*s contact info is:
Dr. David Weiss
NYU Medical Center
530 First Avenue #5D
New York, NY 10016
212-263-7743
Good luck on fixing your knee!
Thu, 01/12/2006 - 5:00pm
#5
David Weiss is also good (and also has a number of Broadway dancers as clients).
Thu, 01/12/2006 - 8:33am
#6
Dr. Scott Rodeo at HHS, has a great bedside manner and is relucant to go into surgery. I am guessing that he is in the same group as Dr.Cordasco.
I had a medial tear, which had gotten to the point where a flap of the minicus was moivng around. Somedays I felt great and others terrible depending on where that flap was. I am a 50+ year old avid squash player, which may stress the knee in more directions than biking. I walked out of the hospital, was on a exercise bike at a low level within the first week, and felt almost 100% with 6 weeks.
If it is fact a tear, doing it now will prevent it from tearing more or having your knee lock up. I made the mistake of being in denial for years.
Good luck
Thu, 01/12/2006 - 9:39am
#7
symptoms....
Hi, What symptoms prompted you to get the MRI in the first place? If your having instability or knee is locking up then I would deffinitely get it addressed. This type of action can cause more damage to your knee in the long and wear more on meniscus and articular joint surface. I would deffinitely get a 2nd opinion, but the dr's at HSS are great. I've seen Cordasco and have had 3 ops there. Surgery is serious/risky business, but sometimes essential to getting back to the acitivities you enjoy most. Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.
Fri, 01/13/2006 - 10:27am
#8
Get a second opinion from Dr. Clifford Stark
I recommend seeing Dr. Stark. He is really good at physical examinations and is very thorough. I would recommend getting his opinion before you opt for surgery. His contact info is below:
http://wb11.empowereddoctor.com/doctor_index.php?id=132
Feel better!
Paul
Sat, 01/14/2006 - 5:29pm
#9
Physical therapy vs. surgery
You guys have come up with a lot of good ideas. I'm a PT, and the skuttlebutt in the PT community is that Hospital for Special Surgery is excellent. Cordasco, Bauman and Weiss are all great. Whoever recommended Cliff Stark is on target, too, though I don't know how much an osteopath is going to be able to do for a meniscus tear.
I don't think anyone should do surgery without trying PT first. Biased answer, but there are risks with any surgery, and you're better off ruling out conservative treatment before you go for the knife. Yes, surgeons want to operate, or most do; it's not unusual to see post-surgical patients who in my opinion could have been treated with PT.
I have to say meniscus is a tough one for PT, but it depends on the tear -- there's a whole system for grading how bad the tears are, what part of the knee they are in, etc. One person's meniscus tear is not necessarily the same as someone else's.
Good luck!
Bob Nelson
