When you have knee pain and go to your doctor or physical therapist for evaluation, getting told you have a meniscus tear after a thorough evaluation or MRI is very common. You might be told you need surgery to fix the meniscus tear and then you'll be pain free, but is this true?
The most common surgery for a meniscus tear is an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy (which also happens to be the most common orthopedic surgery performed in the United States). The procedure uses small scopes to remove torn meniscal fragments and trimming the meniscus back to a stable rim. This is supposed to allow your meniscus to return to doing its stabilizing and shock absorbing job without causing you pain or limitation. But does the surgery really work?
Scientists performed a randomized, double-blind, sham controlled study to look at whether an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy was better than a sham (fake) surgery. They measured pain, symptoms, functional ability, quality of life, satisfaction with the surgery, and whether they would get the same procedure again.
The subjects in the study were asked about these factors at 2, 6, 12, and 24 months post operation. There was no difference between the groups in any of these outcome measures. That means the most common orthopedic surgery is no better than a sham (fake) surgery!
The subjects in the study were asked about these factors at 2, 6, 12, and 24 months post operation. There was no difference between the groups in any of these outcome measures. That means the most common orthopedic surgery is no better than a sham (fake) surgery!
To figure out what this means, first we have to unpack why surgery was no more effective than the sham surgery.
- Did the people in the study have a meniscus tear? Yes.
- Did the surgeon do what they said they were going to do? Yes.
- Was the surgeon competent? Yes.
- Did the sham surgery fix the meniscus? No.
- Did the sham surgery fix anything? No.
So if surgery isn't the answer to knee pain and meniscus tears, what is?
What was missed and not addressed in this study is the cause of the meniscus tear. All of the study participants had degenerative meniscus tears where don't happen from a sudden accident but slowly degenerate over time. What causes this slow degeneration over time?
Misalignment of the knee joint and faulty knee joint mechanics cause the slow degeneration of meniscus over time. The surgery did not fix the faulty joint mechanics or knee alignment, so the surgery was no better at eliminating pain, improving quality of life, or any other metrics measured in the study.
The most important factor in knee joint health and function is alignment. Good alignment will allow pain free function without limitation. Poor alignment will cause pain, limitation, and wear and tear over time.
The most important factor in knee joint health and function is alignment. Good alignment will allow pain free function without limitation. Poor alignment will cause pain, limitation, and wear and tear over time.
The best way to improve knee joint alignment, movement patterns, and function is with personalized posture alignment therapy. Whether you have had surgery to repair a torn meniscus or have not had surgery, posture alignment therapy is effective at improving knee joint alignment and function which will reduce or eliminate pain and improve quality of life.
Contact me today for a free online posture evaluation/consultation.
Contact me today for a free online posture evaluation/consultation.
RSS Feed