title: Non-operative treatment of degenerative posterior root tear of the medial meniscus.
abstract: We reviewed thirty patients with degenerative posterior root tear of the medial meniscus to investigate clinical results of non-operative treatment retrospectively. There were 3 men and 27 women at a median age of 59 years old (range, 51-65). The median follow-up period was 36 months (range, 24-51). Non-operative treatments included non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs daily for 8-12 weeks and supervised physical therapy twice a week at least during a period of 8 weeks. The symptoms, physical signs, the Visual Analog Scale pain, the Lysholm Knee Scoring scale and IKDC subjective activity level were analyzed at the time of pre-intervention, 6 months, 12 months and the final follow-ups. Most patients had intense mechanical pain initially, but the severity and frequency of pain was decreased within 3 months. Clinical outcome was improved at 12 months follow-up and then declined to a level that was still improved over initial scores at final follow-up. Two patients with Kellgren-Lawrence grade 2 progressed to grade 3 at the median follow-up of 36 months. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that non-operative treatment provided symptomatic relief in most patients with the degenerative posterior root tear of the medial meniscus and functional improvements in a short term follow-up.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Korea University College of Medicine, Guro Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hong Chul
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Ji Hoon
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Joon Ho
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chang Woo
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Seok
authors.forename: Min Keun
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D026241:Exercise Movement Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D012107:Research Design; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D000070600:Tibial Meniscus Injuries; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal