Both knees have torn meniscus :(

So, what did the doctor say when you told him you wanted out of the surgrey (for now)? Are they on board with it? Give you a decent prognosis with PT alone?

 

Sorry man... I haven't updated this thread.

I didn't speak with the Doctor directly... I just called and cancelled the surgery. The other Doctor that I went to see did say that either one would make sense. If I wanted to go ahead and get the surgery done that might shorten the PT time, but that I wouldn't have to be on crutches for 2 weeks and then have to worry about how much weight I could put on my knees for another few weeks.

I start therapy on the 27th and the one recommended to me was from a Doctor my Wife works for that he uses. He said that he's very good and that he's quite sore after he goes... this is what I want though. I need and want to feel like I'm doing something to strengthen all of the muscles around the knee. I will likely dedicate a lot of time even after all of this to building my legs up.

I don't know that i'll be doing anymore kicking (though I'd like to), but I did see my instructor when I was out one day and he said we could just work on boxing and elbows and such. I'll see how it all plays out though.

 

I have been through 3 PT sessions thus far, plus exercises at home, and still riding (which they said was fine). The sessions are getting more intense and though they are careful about asking you if you are in any pain, they have the right idea about how one should feel those muscles burning to know you are doing something. For me it's like being back lifting again so I REALLY do like it. It's let me know just how horrible my balance is though. Left foot is more balanced which I was told is normal since that is my lead foot. I do look forward to them telling me that I can get back to training again though.

 

sorry to hear about your knees. as someone who's had an acl replaced, listen to your doctor. you'll be back training in no time.

 

Well, I'm sure the missus is happy about that

 

Bit late to this conversation. SiB, sounds to me like you've done all that you can to avoid surgery. Brilliant. My son just had both his knee caps repaired and I was with him for 90% of his PT sessions. Even though I am an experienced lifter and I am intimately involved with the medical field, I learned a bunch from those sessions.

I have also had my meniscus repaired in my left knee. Arthroscopic procedue. Over and done in 3 hours. Minimal weight bearing with crutches for a week, back to full training in 3 weeks with no need for PT because I was training TKD and lifting. Also, knee pain was gone. I see they gave you braces which immediately made me think "KNEE JOINT STABILITY" issue plus torn meniscuses. Your current PT is great for the issues you have with joint stability but I don't believe it will eliminate any damage to your meniscuses. From what my Sports Orthopedist told me, once torn, only surgery will solve the issue.

All this being said, I am with you in avoiding sharp, pointy things entering my body for ANY reason. I don't care if it's a bee sting, a knife, or a surgeon's scalpel. Best of luck to you.

 

I agree, I've just seen pictures of my meniscus taken during surgery, no way that would resolve itself. It was flipped under the knee cap and the photo of it post flipping back out by the surgeon is pretty nasty, they then shaved the gnarley bits away. Seven weeks on, I feel great, and hope to get back training in another few weeks, mainly once kneeling doesn't feel so tight. I have been able since the first week to start some body weight workouts and just kept building it up (with physio guidance though). I gave physio 6 months before going for the operation and I'm glad I did, I think it helps the recovery, but also I knew at that point it would not get better, so I could resign myself to requiring the op.

 

here's my knee/meniscus/acl story. so i tore my acl playing basketball in 1989. i didn't know it, and i was told it was just a bad sprain (fyi...never believe an emergency room doctor). anyway, i have strong legs from playing soccer, hockey, rugby, basketball, basically my whole life, so i didn't feel the effects of the missing acl until 10 years on. at which point my doctor told me that not only was i missing an acl, but my meniscus had pretty much wore completely away, leaving bone spurs inside my knees from the friction.

if surgery is the best option, then you just got to get on with it so you can recover. the thing is, the surgery is going to cause quite a bit of attrition to the surrounding muscles. i think it's fine to just have the surgery and concentrate on the pt to get better afterwards.

 

Ouch!

Yeah, a mate of mine was told he had sprained his ankle at the A&E but is now waiting on an MRI as his doctor thinks it's torn cartilage, which he assures me is far worse than my knee, this can only be settled on the mat!

 

my advice to anyone now is if you have a problem see specialists, at least two for every issue. the emergency room is actually a waste of time.

 

The emergency room is for emergencys, they cant mri you straight away so if in doubt get seen to make sure its not an emergency, and then go see you regular dr etc to see a specialist if its needed.

 

HA! welllll .....:love:

 

Thanks for your input on your son and your experiences as well. You are lucky that you were a lifter... it likely got you back MUCH faster than most people.

As I have read and understand it, the meniscus can only really "repair" itself on the side where there is blood flow, the other side can basically only be trimmed back to avoid any "flaps" and of course the tears themselves.

The problem I have is that because of the joint flexibility that I have (thumb can touch my wrist, knee easily hyperextends, etc) it has caused part of the problem.. maybe even all of it, so while I did seriously consider the surgery.. thee were just to many studies that said that PT in a study did just as well as surgery. It's all about the person and the severity of the injury though.

Also, I might have considered surgery a little more, but I watch my 1 year old during the day and I just couldn't be on crutches for even a week. It just wasn't possible for me.

My therapist talked with me at length about options and that surgery causes premature arthritis (because there is nothing covering the joint) and because it's not a needed surgery (for most, but not all of course), doctors are apparently making huge money from these.

At least I can walk and I do have less issues in the sense that there is much less pain already as well as no more popping in my right knee. I'll just give it a shot a little while longer, if it's better then that's great... worst case is I still would have to have the surgery done, but all of the muscles around the knee will be much stronger and so help me to hopefully heal quicker.

 

Glad you found my input useful. I do not mean to sound like I am advising you to do anything differently. I only use Sports othopedists for any injury involving torque, joints, tears, or pulls. My guys work with all the major league baseball teams that use our area for spring training. They also deal with our semi-pro hockey team, local high school and college athletic departments, and sponsor a few amauture skate boarders. I am sure they've seen the majority of sports related injuries and I trust them with my family.

Best of luck to you and never let an injury stop you from training. Heal up and figure out what you CAN do not what people say you can't do.

 

you have socialized medical care. when you don't have insurance, the emergency room is your primary care. i was young, poor then.

 

oh no, not at all thinking that man. I was pretty disappointed when I read that you really don't ever "heal" from a meniscal tear, but just get the torn part trimmed away, however I did feel better about how many people have the issue and still continue playing sports, doing MA, etc.

My PT has also worked with some elite athletes, bodybuilders, etc. Honestly, a lot of these guys heal faster because they are using some sort of collagen enhancer like Deca, EQ, etc. Very helpful stuff in therapeutic doses when it comes to the speed of healing. A shame that Doctors these days are quick to pass out opiates to anyone with a headache, but ask about an anabolic steroid and they are completely against it. To much money in pain management these days though.

 

Update... I have now done 8 PT sessions. My legs are visibly larger from the workouts. It's much like circuit training... 1 exercise after the next. Legs are definitely stronger as well obviously. I don't have a lot of pain, but there is still a discomfort there. I just use ice after riding or whatever I have to do that might strain the knees.

It looks like for now I am going to be strictly a boxer... nothing wrong with that of course. I did my first private lesson in I guess 3 months or so. We just worked on punching... pushing off the back foot with the jab to close distance. We did some light sparring and surprisingly, I touched him more than I had previously... probably because he's not used to not kicking and such. Overall good workout though, i'm happy that i'm able to do something more than just riding and doing push-ups.

Now I just have to improve my hand speed and slipping punches... etc.

 

Glad it went well. Makes you feel like a million, dern't it? I canna say for others but I noticed when I went to western boxing after having done a bit of MT, I felt so much...more comfortable, more adept at punching. I felt my punches were stronger - not having worry with kicking - which always seemed to drain the petrol tank much more than punching and returned a fraction of the dividends.

 

Definitely makes you feel better yeah