Considering knee surgery? Read this first.

In the clinic we see thousands of patients with knee pain each year. Most avoid surgery. Some have surgery because they require it. Believe it or not some have surgery that could have been avoided! It’s this last group I would like to discuss. Imagine having knee surgery you didn’t need. The cost, the risk, and more often than not, the less than satisfactory outcome. 

Often knee pain in the middle to older age groups is caused by what is called a degenerative meniscal tear. So what is the meniscus? Glad you asked :) It’s a soft pliable fibro-cartilage structure within the knee joint, attached to the top of your shin bone, the “tibia”. You have two that interlink. One towards the inside part of your knee, the “medial meniscus” and one towards the outside part, the “lateral meniscus”. They act as a shock absorber and to some extent stabiliser of the knee. As a natural part of life you can get changes in these tissues, much like how we get wrinkles and grey hair. These structures can become worn and sometimes develop tears. Many years ago it was common practice for orthopaedic surgeons to operate and remove these tears, however in more recent times there has been an explosion of scientific research that supports conservative management for this type of problem. The world’s current best evidence for management of this knee condition supports education, weight management (if required) and supervised graded exercise. Physiotherapy is the mainstay of conservative management. Integrating education, hands on treatment, taping techniques and graded individualised exercise can make a significant difference to your strength, mobility and pain.  

Unfortunately some orthopaedic surgeons continue to operate on these tears. In our experience and what the research has shown, often these patients do not do well following the operation. In fact they can end up on the slippery slope to having a total knee replacement. Remember if you're seeing a surgeon be sure he only looks after knees. This makes sense, would you trust a marine mechanic with your family car? 

There are 2 key things you should be asking yourself before having surgery for your degenerative meniscal tear: 

1. Have I done 8-12 weeks of good quality physiotherapy that includes education about my condition, graded strength and mobility work? 

2. Have I spoken with a well respected orthopaedic surgeon that ONLY looks after knees 

Want to know more? Feel free to give us a call on (07) 5531 9555, email us at admin@myvitalityphysio.com.au or simply drop into our Paradise Point or Hope Island clinics.