Thank for for the follow up. I’m looking at getting this done in the near future and thought that pre-habbing would help. Thanks for another data point.
After a stretch of work that had me kneeling quite a bit (building a trade show booth), one of my knees was terribly sore and I was limping about. So much so, I went to the local orthopedic sports specialists to learn what was up with my knee. The ortho took a scan, diagnosed I had a meniscus tear, and offered to get me in within a week to “clean it up.”
I asked a Dr. friend for a 2nd opinion and within minutes she texted me links to several peer reviewed papers that recommend against having minor meniscus tears removed for middle aged adults (I was 50 at the time). That was 5 years ago. I still have a torn meniscus in my knee. I’m as active as ever (bike, run, ski, etc…) and as long as I maintain my mobility, it never bothers me.
YMMV, but do your research, get other opinions, and look at options for avoiding surgery.
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I 100% agree with this. The research is there, and in my experience it’s a coin flip after the age of 50 for minesectomies. Half the patients do OK, and the other half just hasten the need for a knee replacement sooner. Just doing the scope and removing the tissue changes the knee and the swelling/pain although short term really affect quad strength and activation.
That being said if someone’s knee is constantly buckling, locking, or catching then surgery is almost always a must.
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Had mine done in mid - December 2018 and stiil made it to the Mallorca 312 in early April 2019- although I did the 225 distance. It took a few weeks to get a good range of motion before starting training. I would recommend focusing on gym work to rebuild the muscles.
Had my L lateral meniscectomy done 12 years ago. They’re much less invasive and encourage WBAT asap nowadays. I probably was too conservative getting back to WB and PT and probably developed some scar tissue in the process. I don’t have full range of motion anymore. Like @jreinfeld said prognosis is 50/50
Hey, I’m going through a similar issue - small posterior horn medial meniscus tear. Ortho doc says a repair is likely due to size and age.
A few questions for you:
-How is the knee now a year later?
-How long did you stay off the bike?
Appreciate it!
I had mine done years ago
A year later it was fine
As I recall it was about 2 months off the bike.
However when the doc was in there he said you have hardly any cartilage left. His advice was to stop cross country running adventure races and stick with the bike. Now in my 70’s my knees are good enough to do 100 mile events at speed. Very steep climbs are not the best.
I’m about 1.5 years post surgery. I had a partial meniscectomy and not a repair, so my recovery time was shorter. My knee is 95% currently. It feels strong and I can do everything. I just deal with some pain occasionally that is decreasing over time.
I got back on the indoor bike about 2 weeks after surgery, on the road about 4-6 weeks later and my first MTB rides 8 weeks post surgery. Everything was fun but that time frame for mountain biking was definitely pushing it. I think I probably set back my overall recovery because of the early mountain biking.
Now I am able to run, play basketball, etc…
One thing that has tremendously benefited me is “knees over toes” training. If you’re not familiar, the idea is to train strength through mobility ‘extremes’ to help make the joints bulletproof. It has truly worked for me in a great way.