Meniscus Tear Surgery Necessary For All Patients?

Tearing of the meniscus is a very common injury for all ages, even people who are not active in sports or exercise. After the age of 25, most meniscus tears are degenerative in nature and is almost impossible to sew back together. Dr. Luks explains the significance of meniscus tear surgery and the impact that it might have on a patient's quality of life.

Howard J. Luks, MD: One of the most common questions that I get in my office on a daily basis is "is surgery for my meniscus tear necessary?". A lot of that is based on your age and the type of tear that you have and most importantly the effect that the pain is causing, is having on your quality of life.

Now age, if you are young, you typically sustain large tears and if you have a tear and you lose the meniscus then your risk of developing arthritis is very high. So, therefore sports medicine specialists are very aggressive in repairing or suturing and stitching back meniscus tears. That is typically possible and almost all tears and people under the age of 25.

Over the age of 25, most tears are degenerative in nature where the tissue has simply worn out. That tissue is very difficult if not impossible is sew back together and the meniscus has no regenerative or healing capabilities so even if we were able to stitch it back together, we would not expect that meniscus to heal.

Now many people have meniscus tears. As a matter or fact, over 50% of people over the age of 50 have tears of their meniscus and most of them do not even know it. One day your knee starts to hurt, you go to your physician's office and may be an MRI was obtained a little too early and it shows a meniscus tear. The next day you find yourself in an orthopedist's office and they are recommending surgery.

We need to teach ourselves to treat patients and treat their MRI findings. That means simply that "Is that tear is causing you a lot of pain? Is that pain having a significant impact on your quality of life? Did we give that tear enough time to settle down and see if the pain is going to go away on its own?" So, when you have a meniscus tear, give it time, see if the pain is going to settle down if it does not, is that pain having a significant impact on your quality of life and if the answer to that is yes then surgery may be the right answer for you. However, the majority of people over the ages of 35 or 40, surgery for meniscus tears is not necessary.

Learn more about Dr. Luks: http://www.howardluksmd.com/about/about-me/

This information should not be relied upon as a substitute for personal medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Use the information provided on this site solely at your own risk.  If you have any concerns about your health, please consult with a physician.

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