Meniscus Tear Symptoms and Treatments

If you’ve ever read about meniscus tear symptoms, you would know that a person with torn meniscus can still walk with their broken knee. This, however, does not mean that you should take the problem lightly. It is always good to go to an orthopedic surgeon and discuss your options.

It is important that you go to a physician at the earliest if you come across meniscus tear symptoms. The condition keeps getting worse if you do not get the right treatment at the right time. Your legs have trouble bearing a lot of weight and even moving your leg can be a major issue if you do not get in touch with a doctor.

Meniscus Tear Symptoms

The most common meniscus tear symptoms are stiffness in the knee, swelling in the legs, locking knee, pain in the knee at the slightest of movements, limited motion, trouble in balancing, extreme fatigue after too much physical activity, a painful sensation in the inner edges of the knee and buckling of the knee.

Among the various symptoms of a meniscus tear, the most severe symptoms are called Cooper’s sign. This torn meniscus symptom comes into picture when you feel extreme pain in your knee while tossing over in your bed. The reason for pain is the sheer stretch of the meniscal fragment.

You can, of course, go through a meniscus tear treatment but you should be ready to spend a good amount of money on the treatment. A surgery might even prove to be more expensive but it would surely help you get rid of the pain for good.

Testing for a Knee Problem

It is a good idea to step into a meniscus tear rehab as soon as you notice signs of a meniscus tear. The first test that a physician would carry out on you would be the McMurray test. This is a test that examines the level of swelling in the knee. The meniscus is checked for tenderness in the joints. For more information about this test, read this post.

The second test is the Steinmann test which is more or less similar to the McMurray test. The Apley’s grind test (Apley Compression test) is performed in order for the doctors to be sure that the meniscus is torn.

You might have to go through a considerable amount of pain when these tests are being performed on you. This is because you are required to stretch your legs and then bend your knee perpendicular to your thighs.

Meniscus Tear Treatments

Meniscus tear treatment is one of the most intense treatment programs. There are a number of treatment options that the doctors can choose from depending on your condition. If you do not come across intense pain in your knee but still have pains while running or walking, you probably have an acute meniscus tear.

In this case, you need not go through surgery and simple meniscus tear treatment methods can prove to be extremely effective. These methods involve using ice bags on the knee, complete rest for a few days, physical therapy and anti–inflammatory medications.

Before determining the kind of treatment that you need to go through the doctors would probably ask you about the various meniscuses tear symptoms that you’ve been experiencing in the last few days. Tests like McMurray and Apley’s tests are performed on your knee in order to understand the exact condition of the tear.

If the problem is in its initial stages, simple cortisone injections can prove to be very effective in reducing the inflammation in the joint. On the other hand, if the problem is a serious one, you would be advised to go through with the surgery.

If you’ve come across Cooper’s signs of a meniscus tear, then you would probably need to go through with medial meniscus tear surgery. The Cooper’s signs of a meniscus tear refer to the condition where you confront with intense pain in your knee when turning over in your bed.

Similarly, if you’ve been experiencing locking of the knee, it is a clear indication of surgery. The surgical procedures may cost a lot of money but at least they rid you of the intense pain that you’ve been facing.

Meniscus Tear Surgery

If the condition of the patient is very serious, the doctors can perform a meniscus transplant. This would involve replacing the meniscus in your knee with a healthy meniscus. In some cases, complications might come into picture after the surgery and therefore complete rest is a must once you’ve had the surgery done. You need to take your medicines on a regular basis for a few months after the surgery in order to ensure complete recovery.

As soon as you come across meniscus tear symptoms it is time to look for meniscus tear treatment procedures. If you ignore the problem initially, you might have to spend a lot of money later and experience a lot of pain. You should also make sure that you consult with a good doctor as meniscus tear treatment procedures should only be performed by experienced doctors.