My wait time for office visits has always been less than 10 minutes. The healing phase is long, but he does A+ work. A meniscus root repair involves reattaching the meniscus back to bone where it has been torn. He is walking without a limb and is on schedule with his progress. My daughter journey was very trying and hard but we made it through with all of their help. In terms of when, one should plan to perform a meniscus root repair as soon as it is diagnosed as long as ones articular cartilage is still fairly intact. If it is your right knee, it will be at least a week before you can drive, as it would be risky to have to hit the break too soon after surgery, and you would be a risk to yourself and everyone else on the road. When a torn fragment is floating in the joint, patients will feel a sudden, sha twitter.com/i/web/status/1, According to an injury study done in 2021, #Pickleball has been deemed safer than #tennis and better for individual twitter.com/i/web/status/1, Cysts Acetabular Paralabral and Subchondral, ACL Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury of the Knee, Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Runners Knee, PVNS of the Knee Pigmented Villonodular Synovitis, Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation Surgery (OATS), Patellofemoral Arthroscopy Runners Knee Treatment, Stabilization for Instability-Arthroscopic, Subacromial Decompression for Impingement, How to prevent common skiing and snowboarding injuries | Ski Injury Doctor Manhattan, BICMD Co-Founder and Co-CEO Announces Expansion of Services, Patients are partial weight bearing for the first 4 weeks and then during weeks 4-6 are progressed to full weight-bearing. For more information on meniscus root tears of the knee and meniscus root repair surgery, please contact the office of Benedict Nwachukwu, MD, orthopedic knee specialist serving Manhattan, New York City and the surrounding New York boroughs. One should not look at age as a factor for meniscus root repairs. Call your doctor or 911 if you think you may have a medical emergency. If I had not spent the last several years of my life squatting, benching, pressing and deadlifting, I would not have had the strength to continue to be as active as I was after my surgery, and I most certainly would not have known how to rehab my knee on my own. The meniscus root attachment is important because if the meniscus becomes detached, it can squirt out of the joint, called extrusion, which can lead to the meniscus not being functional. Did you have any meniscus surgery in the past and youre still dealing with pain, swelling and possibly even losing motion in your knee? Meniscus root repair is most commonly performed arthroscopically under regional anesthesia. 4. My day is pretty much elevate the leg, ice the leg, do the exercises permitted twice a day. Other complications can include a blood clot, which is usually treated preemptively with some type of blood thinner, and irritation around the surgical button and/or surgical knot from the meniscus root tear. What to do if I have a radial meniscus tear, what's the chance of it fully healing with surgery? I put a knee brace on and made it through class, but by the time I drove home I could barely bend my knee. In some instances, the meniscus posterior horn may need to be released from scar tissue to allow it to be repositioned. At the end of March, my doctor told me I could take my brace off completely, and use crutches for another week if I needed to. The pain is usually located one the sides or front of the knee, although it can occasionally be located in the back of the knee. Types of root tears: I recommend him, as well as his staff, to anyone requiring such services. I am 5-months post surgery, and am doing great, stationary biking and exercising every day, no pain.You know you are seeing the best when you find out he has written over 500 medical journal articles - among many other accomplishments. Specializes in Orthopedic Reconstructive Surgery. After creating two transtibial tunnels, passing sutures through the detached root of the meniscus and down the tibial tunnels, the sutures are tensioned to reduce the root of the meniscus to anatomic position. In patients who have open growth plates, consideration may be necessary to either plan to remove the sutures after the meniscus root repair heals or to consider placing the tunnels and suture repair above the growth plate such that is does not cross the growth plate and have a theoretical chance of causing a growth plate arrest. The posterior roots are the most important as this is where a root tear occurs most commonly. Oct 24, 2020. Meniscal repair may be performed either by open surgery under direct vision or minimally invasively using an arthroscope that can be inserted into the knee through a very small key-hole incision to locate and repair the damaged meniscus. So if thats your feeling youve taken them and it hasnt really made a difference for you dont take them if you feel like to help you out please take them but dont just take the supplements in hopes of that replacing doing the right exercises and having the right expectations youve got to do them both together give us a like if you thought this video was helpful and please drop a comment if you have any questions and i hope that you get better real soon have a wonderful day guys. Tuesday: 8:00 am 5:00 pm The results of meniscus root repairs in the literature are encouraging, but more improvement is necessary in the future. The general published success rate for a meniscus root repair is between 80% and 85%. It involves removal of some or all of a meniscus from the tibio-femoral joint of the knee using arthroscopic (keyhole) surgery. This can occur with turning, twisting, or pivoting activities or sports. I am now adding 10 pounds a week to the bar for squats. In this technique, sutures are placed into the torn meniscus root and then shuttled down tunnels in the tibia to tie the repair into place. This is because the signs of arthritis are usually pain and swelling with activities. Later that summer, the left knee began to bother meagain. BJJ was also becoming more and more of an issue, and the warm-ups were now next to impossible. Two weeks. Unfortunately, I was still not allowed to bend my knee completely, so I was still doing all benching on one leg. If so, you may be at risk of tearing the root of your meniscus. And this channel is dedicated to helping people stay healthy, active and mobile. Recommend highly. Does having a cortisone shot help a meniscus tear or is surgery the only option? Meniscus root repair surgery recovery Most patients can return to full activity 4-6 months after a meniscus root repair. Driving after meniscus root repair depends on which knee it is. Crutches will be used until the patient can walk without a limp on the repaired knee, which takes about 2 weeks after surgery. endobj Squatting, lifting from a squat and sitting cross-legged should be avoided for 3-4 months. But if we are stronger, we are harder to break, and we most certainly recover faster and better. Repetitive motions, overuse, and muscular imbalances ar twitter.com/i/web/status/1, Digging Deeper into the Data: Is Suture Bridge Repair + #PRP really the best technique for #rotatorcuffrepair? twitter.com/i/web/status/1, Wild Life of the Last #BlackJockey to Rule the #KentuckyDerby In younger patients, meniscus root tears often occur with a piece of bone being avulsed off the tibia. On Wednesday, February 20, 2019, I had a meniscus root repair surgery on my left knee. Thus, these patients can often have early onset arthritis, the development of bony edema, insufficiency fractures, and the failure of concurrent cruciate ligament reconstruction grafts. amount of, supply and beyond the age of 15 has limited healing without surgery. In determining if one can have a revision root repair, one needs to determine the cause of the failure as well as the amount of underlying arthritis. Arrange for someone to drive you home as you will not be able to drive yourself after surgery. Figure 5:: Cortical fixation of transtibial meniscal root repair. 5 wks into recovery of acl/meniscus tear surgery, I am still taking pain medicine. Healing kind of goes fast the beginning and then it tapers off. Many tears have better outcomes if they are treated early. Non-anatomic root repairs do not restore normal joint biomechanics . Surgical repair can successfully allow the meniscus to heal. There was also proliferative synovitis present throughout the patellofemoral joint, including the medial and lateral gutters. The technique of a meniscus root repair involves isolating the root, placing a minimum of 2 sutures in the remaining meniscal attachment, and trying to reposition it back to a more anatomic position. The biggest mistake that people make after having a meniscus surgery is theyre doing too much way too soon. This happens way more often than I like to admit. The most common complication after a meniscus root repair is a re-tear. I would have relied strictly on physical therapy. In general, patients have to develop good quadriceps strength to allow for maximum absorption with activities prior to returning back to any significant hiking, jogging or running activities. Meniscus repair is usually done with arthroscopic surgery. If the patient has or has developed significant arthritis, which is usually designated at Kellgren-Lawrence grades 3 or 4, it is felt that a revision root repair may not be indicated. Medial meniscus root repair midterm results suggest excellent outcomes in a well-aligned knee with minimal degenerative change. I have successfully repaired meniscus root tears in patients that were 70 and 71 years old respectively and they are some of my happiest patients. Fig 1 (A) Meniscus 4 A-II device. After a pretty serious car accident, Dr. Burnham performed knee surgery on me. Weight bearing as tolerated after 6 weeks. He answered all of my concerns about my knee. In terms of how, the transtibial technique has been felt to be the most effective way to pull the meniscus root back to its normal attachment site. If the meniscus is extruded, the patient may not be having a restoration of their shock-absorbing capacity of the meniscus. Multiple large loose bodies were removed from my knee joint, the largest of which measured approximately 20mm. I press and bench with no modifications. That means that the remaining meniscus is smaller, but still taking the same pressure. Malempati C. Bonasia DE, Pellegrino P, DAmelio A, Cottino U, Rossi R. Meniscal Root Tear Repair: Why, When and How? 1) You must be off narcotic medications for a . The next day, my left knee blew up to the size of a grapefruit. Get answers from Family Physicians and top U.S. doctors, Our doctors evaluate, diagnose, prescribe, order lab tests, and recommend follow-up care. (including injections and arthroscopic surgery), I heard Dr. La Prade was going to practice in the Twin Cities - where I live, & waited for him, based on his renown reputation. No swelling. We use the 2-tunnel technique to maximize biologic healing of the meniscus down to a broad surface. When I woke up I was in significant pain but the nurses had it under control by the time I left. MRI is used to look more closely at the meniscus and determine if it is something that needs surgical treatment, although not all meniscus root tears show up on MRI. The most important thing as one gets older is the quality of the cartilage present. Patients are allowed to initiate weightbearing at 6 weeks, but should avoid any significant squatting, squatting and lifting, or sitting cross-legged for a minimum of 5-6 months. He listens and address every concern with appropriate solutions. In our hands, because we have performed many second look arthroscopies, we have found that the 2-tunnel technique allows for a broader surface area of the meniscus against the decorticated bone and seems to allow for a more solid and secure repair. I chose not to use my crutches anymore. This usually presents with pain along the inside or medial portion of the joint and with swelling with activities. United States. Using specific guides to ensure that one can place tunnels in the anatomic position and using self-capture devices, which have been devised to be small enough to not scuff up the cartilage, are some of the best means to perform a transtibial meniscus root repair with self-capture devices. In addition, we looked at varying suture techniques through the meniscus, including 2 simple sutures, as well as other configurations of meniscus suture techniques, which are more complex. If a meniscal root tear is left untreated, meniscal extrusion can occur rendering the meniscus nonfunctional resulting in degenerative arthritis. That was day one. For these, please consult a doctor (virtually or in person). Previous attempts to make it better provided only temporary relief. There are some isolated reports of using suture anchors to repair a meniscus root repair, but this area of the knee is very difficult to access and the suture anchors can leave large knots which could subsequently interfere with the cartilage surfaces in the knee. Meniscus root repair surgeon, Doctor Benedict Nwachukwu provides diagnosis as well as surgical and nonsurgical treatment options for patients in Manhattan, New York City, NY who need meniscus root repair surgery. If it is the right knee, the average time until the patient is able to drive is 6-9 weeks. Hands down would recommend him!! I was life flighted to MCR in Loveland, CO. My orthopedic injuries were severe, but totally missesd by the orthopedic team at Poudre. The thoughtful, open communication and treatment was everything I could have asked for pre-, during, and now post surgery. Knows his stuff. They explain things very well. Few tears will become. The first step is usually to use especially designed cannulas and guides to drill up into the area that was decorticated. In this procedure, the torn meniscus is sewn back together using arthroscopy to place small stitches. 2 0 obj Please try again. I consulted with SSC and DPT Darin Deaton prior to my surgery and then afterwards, when I discovered it had been a meniscus root repair. W;5$u4Yxa_V_bm}q8=^_qbY,H(+",X'{|oMs"&A;3.E s&L=Z`)!]$],b }zb& Y@dy.Lif1:4@"Fz"U2`/h0|6^T&}56+Q:Dn{d:rqW@3 7 U. And its really concerning and very disappointing for somebody whos gone through the knee surgery. It was press/bench day, so I set up for some seated presses and dragged a stool over to prop my left leg up while I benched. General anesthesia and a nerve block. Highly recommended! Dr. Burnham and Jerrica are AMAZING! Often, when a meniscus root is torn, it will retract in the joint and become stuck in place. In addition, there is no low age for meniscus repairs, with some root repairs being done in patients as young as 6 or 7 years old. Therefore, we then looked at surgical techniques and due to the fact that we had multiple second look arthroscopies after bone grafting for ACL reconstructions with meniscus root tears, that the 1-tunnel technique had more of a spot welding healing of the meniscus to bone whereas the 2-tunnel meniscus root repair technique had a much better healing surface of the meniscus to bone. GREAT DOCTOR VERY CARING AND KNOWLEDGEABLE!! There goes my knee again.. Meniscus repair rehab protocol. PT or exercise can be useful BUT take note of these the BoneSmart view on exercise BoneSmart philosophy for sensible post op therapy 5. In fact 2 years ago I finished climbing the top 100 peaks in CO. But its just not common knowledge to take six to 12 months to heal after a meniscus surgery. Thus, the entire weight of the body is transmitted through the femur into the cartilage of the knee. dressing in 48 hrs and may let them drive I definitely know that I would not have been able to do all that I can do now, if I had not gone into the surgery strong. I wont ever go anywhere else. My calf swelled up into my ankles. The goal of a meniscus root tear repair is to locate the torn root and tack it back down to the bone using strong sutures. These are totally different. His interaction with me around my surgery calmed me, and his excellent work in the operating room speaks for itself. It is our goal to provide the highest level of care and service to our patients. Great shoulder doc. <> At the beginning of April, I was dancing at a friends wedding when I suddenly heard and felt a loud pop in my left knee. Amazing Doctor and wonderful staff!! We are so grateful for you both! Studies comparing repair with either meniscectomy or conservative treatment found greater improvement and slower . To accomplish this goal, Dr. Nwachukwu drills a small hole from the outside of the tibia (shin bone) into the knee joint next to the natural attachment of the meniscus root. Repair of the meniscal root significantly increased functional outcomes scores in 14 of 14 studies and the rate of conversion to TKA was considerably less than those observed following conservative treatment or partial meniscectomy. And get the pain under control and recover normally the way that you should have once you start doing the right things. By using our website, you consent to our use of cookies. And its a lot slower for the remaining, you know, six to nine months after the first two or three months. Thank you Dr. Burnham for being so amazing! EDINA- CROSSTOWN OFFICE The swelling started to go down, but there was now a lump behind my knee that felt like fluid. I never met a doctor and his team that showed some much compassion about their patient. If your job mostly involves sitting at a desk, you may be able to get back to work in a week or two. Medial Patellofemoral Ligament (MPFL) Reconstruction . Other non-medical modalities may help, such as using ice and elevating the leg. Really a national leader in sports medicine! When the meniscus root becomes detached, the meniscus can extrude out of the joint and lead to effectively having no functional meniscus. Therefore, it is strongly recommended to proceed with a meniscus root repair whenever possible, with patients up to the age of 70 being reported as having excellent return of function. Your subscription could not be saved. They are also important to the stability and function of the knee, keeping the meniscus in place. <>/Font<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/Annots[ 12 0 R] /MediaBox[ 0 0 612 792] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S/StructParents 0>> A meniscus root tear can occur due to a traumatic event or degeneration. But typically physical therapy goes two to three months you get 80% better and a lot of times people have the expectation setting themselves that they can get back to everything that theyre doing before and thats just not the case they can do a lot of things now that they couldnt before the surgery typically. And cartilage is one of the slowest healing tissues in the body. This technique allows for the meniscus to be pulled down into a broad surface area, maximizing its chance for biologic healing. Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone. Prior to that, they are recommended to use crutches. Jerrica, Dr. Burnham, and the therapy staff (Luke and Joey )were awesome. Then I trained. Grant H. Garcia, MD 148 subscribers Dr Garcia demonstrates his new meniscal extrusion technique to further improve meniscus root repairs. After you have surgery to repair a meniscus tear, you may need to build up your strength in the muscles of your leg that support your knee. Next, sutures are placed in the meniscal attachment and threaded through the hole in the tibia. Appreciate the attention and time spent during office visits. They are connected to your tibia by meniscal roots. I highly recommend Dr Burnham for your orthopedic needs hands down. Dr. Ahmad M Hadied and another doctor agree, is on the left leg i let some patients They have poor healing potential, and are extremely important to the stability and cushioning of the knee. Identifying and properly treating meniscus tears (with or without surgery) will lead to the most rapid reduction in your symptoms and is crucial to optimize the long term health of your knee. The Steadman Clinic - Edwards, CO The mini First-Pass device allows placement of either a suture or an UltraTape through the substance of the meniscus, capturing the end of the stitch as it is placed through the meniscus and then it can be pulled out of the joint. Stated to me , in detail, what to expect and how long my recovery will take. When you put weight on your leg, it is the meniscal roots that transfer the axial loading forces of the knee into hoop stress in the meniscus. Return to driving after surgery is okay once narcotic pain medication has been stopped and you are cleared by your surgeon. Meniscal root avulsions are a challenging injury causing meniscal extrusion and loss of hoop stress distribution, which can lead to the development of knee arthritis.1 Securing the meniscus in a small bone socket has proven to be an effective means to restore hoop stresses and improve outcomes.2 The FlipCutter II reamer and meniscal root marking hook allow for a minimally invasive .
driving after meniscus root repair