A 2013 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that physical therapy can be just as successful as surgery in treating tears of the meniscus, a rubbery C-shaped disc that cushions your knee. Each knee has two of these discs—one at the outer edge of the knee and one at the inner edge—that keep your knee steady by balancing your weight across the knee. A torn meniscus can prevent your knee from working correctly. While it is certainly exciting to discover that this common injury can be healed in a noninvasive therapeutic way, it is also important that patients understand the reality of these recent findings.
Meniscus tears frequently aff ect older adults with osteoarthritis. In fact, around 35% of people older than 50 suff er from this type of knee injury. Many patients end up undergoing arthroscopic surgery to correct the tear, but some try to manage the pain and increase mobility through physical therapy. Because there has not really been a consensus about the best course of treatment, a team of researchers from various medical centers sought answers to this question.
The researchers took a group of 351 patients older than 45 who suff ered from knee pain, knee osteoarthritis and tears of their meniscus. These individuals were randomly assigned to receive surgery or a physical therapy program. After following the patients for a year, the researchers discovered that both physical therapy and surgery yielded similar results in terms of how patients felt and functioned.
However, some of the individuals in the physical therapy group still ended up undergoing surgery, either because they were unsatisfi ed with how they felt after the therapy or because their physicians decided they would benefi t from surgical intervention. This suggests that a great deal depends on an individual’s body and the nature of the injury. In some cases, physical therapy is not enough, and surgery will still be necessary. For others, therapy will yield the same results as a more invasive approach.
The moral of the story? There is no harm in trying physical therapy fi rst, before opting for surgery. Worst–case scenario: You will end up having the surgery anyway. Best case: You will recover from your meniscus tear simply by engaging in a therapeutic exercise program designed by us to speci fically meet your needs. Either way, it’s a win-win proposition. So, if you have torn your meniscus, schedule an appointment to get started on an exercise program speci fically tailored to your needs and goals.