During the aging process, the fibrous cartilage between the thighbone (femur) and the shinbone (tibia) within the knee can degenerate and become prone to tearing. These cartilages—the medial meniscus and lateral meniscus—act as shock absorbers, thus protecting the joint surfaces from undue wear and tear, which can lead to arthritis. When you run, walk or […]
You have been told you have a degenerative meniscus tear in your knee. Don’t blame yourself―you did nothing to bring this on. A degenerative condition results from plain old wear and tear linked to aging—in this case, of the cartilage (usually the medial meniscus) within the knee that serves as a shock absorber. As cartilage […]
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 […]
Remember the old children’s song that went, “the knee bone’s connected to the thigh bone”? Those lyrics are a bit misleading. The thigh bone is actually connected to the shinbone; the knee joint rests between these two bones, cushioned by an important portion of cartilage called the meniscus. When this cartilage becomes torn or damaged, […]
