Knee surgery -- "ccomplex tear of the medial meniscus"

Quick86

Quick86

"New Thread" & "Post Reply" button abuser
So I got injured at work (yes, work is paying for it)... I rotated and my knee twisted and tore my meniscus. After 5 weeks of corporate doctors saying it was a sprain and sending me back to work with an ice pack and some aleve I was sent for an MRI last week. Michigan State University said it is a complex tear of my medial meniscus and there is also some (laymans terms) mild cracking of the tissue between the two bones due to rubbing now.

So they sent me back to work with the same words of ice it 3 times a day and take aleve until corporate insurance approves the authorization for a surgeon..... The corp. doc wants to send me back to MSU whom has a GREAT track record for meniscus and knee repair from what I have read and understand.


My question is has anyone dealt with meniscus repair surgery? And what kind of down time am I looking at? All I can find on line varies pretty severely from 1-2 weeks all the way to 3-5 months!!! The work doctor for all intents and purposes doesn't seem to have as much knowledge on the subject it appears and I cannot get an answer on that.

I am not too excited about this. One thing everything says is don't plan on driving for 1-2 weeks (if not 2-4 weeks depending on severity) after surgery. Pretty much kills my summer of enjoying the newly finished Mustang :(
 
Sorry I didn't mean to make a joke out of your pain. I just thought it was a perfect picture for the thread. I hope all goes well and maybe you could use the pic to show any females at work how serious the injury is.
 
Quick86 said:
So I got injured at work (yes, work is paying for it)... I rotated and my knee twisted and tore my meniscus. After 5 weeks of corporate doctors saying it was a sprain and sending me back to work with an ice pack and some aleve I was sent for an MRI last week. Michigan State University said it is a complex tear of my medial meniscus and there is also some (laymans terms) mild cracking of the tissue between the two bones due to rubbing now.

So they sent me back to work with the same words of ice it 3 times a day and take aleve until corporate insurance approves the authorization for a surgeon..... The corp. doc wants to send me back to MSU whom has a GREAT track record for meniscus and knee repair from what I have read and understand.


My question is has anyone dealt with meniscus repair surgery? And what kind of down time am I looking at? All I can find on line varies pretty severely from 1-2 weeks all the way to 3-5 months!!! The work doctor for all intents and purposes doesn't seem to have as much knowledge on the subject it appears and I cannot get an answer on that.

I am not too excited about this. One thing everything says is don't plan on driving for 1-2 weeks (if not 2-4 weeks depending on severity) after surgery. Pretty much kills my summer of enjoying the newly finished Mustang :(
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Just checked with the wife, she said plan to be on limited activity for 2 weeks or so then physical therapy afterward
 
I had a cracked miniscus a few years ago. Cracked it playing softball - I just did a pivot from the pitchers mound to catch a fly ball and it popped. It was a pretty easy surgery. They just make three slits and go around and clean it up like they do for scoping your knee. Had surgery on Friday and I was back at work Monday with crutches (desk job).

-Geoff
 
I've had 2 meniscus and 2 ACL surgeries. It really depends on the tear/scuff. My second meniscus they found my meniscus flipped over and bone on bone wear. It wasn't pretty and hurt like a bitch.

Meniscus does to grow back 100%, so it will eventually bother you again.

First scuff was a clean up and I was walking in now time. The 2nd time of the tear drs were much more cautious to release me
 
I've had the same knee worked on twice. In 2001 I had reconstructive surgery for a torn ACL, and in 2013 I had arthroscopic surgery for a torn meniscus and a chunk of bone had broken off the very top of my tibia. My tear was classified the exact same as yours. The arthroscopic surgery really wasn't a big deal. It was outpatient surgery on a Friday and I was limping to/from the bathroom on my own later that afternoon. I had crutches but they were more of a bother to use than anything. The pain was more than manageable with over the counter stuff, IMO. I was back to work on Monday. My knee was still fairly swollen so the flexibility wasn't great, but it wasn't too bad. I'd come home and elevate it with ice, and had no major issues.

Because there is very little blood flow to that part of your body, the meniscus doesn't really heal itself, and especially on the outside when it's a medial tear. Physical therapy can help, but depending on how bad and where the tear is, you could end up with your knee locking up or having issues with it popping if you did avoid surgery. I know you probably weren't going this route anyhow, but figured the info couldn't hurt.

All the above said, follow your physical therapy schedule to a T. Not because the doctors say to or because corporate wants you healthy, but because any joint surgery is an awesome time to screw yourself in the future. I still get knee pain and swelling on a regular basis. Given I've had more work done than what you're requiring, but my point is to not skip on the stupid exercises and stretching they'll tell you to do.

tldr; Not a major thing at all, and nothing to really worry about. Within a few days you'll at least be up and around without any crutches or help. Do your PT.
 
Any surgery you get should be a reduction in pain.... but don't expect it to function 100% ever again... Your going to need to avoid impact on the joint in the future to keep it healthy.... by the time your going to need knee replacement I'm sure the process will be greatly improved.
 
Quick86 said:
LOL.



Yeah being a factory worker who bends twists walks and turns on it all day I'm not sure how fast they will want to bring me back.
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Oh they'll want to bring you back asap, stay on top of your insurance paperwork/requirements and don't let your work "force" you back before your knee is ready.
 
CMYZ28 said:
Oh they'll want to bring you back asap, stay on top of your insurance paperwork/requirements and don't let your work "force" you back before your knee is ready.
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ALSO keep a VERY detailed file of who/what/when/where/time of people you talked to and everything... Don't let them screw you or push you in asap....
 
ReiKo said:
x023984028340298342

ALSO keep a VERY detailed file of who/what/when/where/time of people you talked to and everything... Don't let them screw you or push you in asap....
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Thanks for the advice fellas.

Nick - have the Mrs read this description. All they keep saying is "its bad" and too me I have no idea how bad its describing. On a scale of 1 to 10 how far in the "you're fucked" category am I?

7lcFQOz.jpg
 
quick86 said:
thanks for the advice fellas.

Nick - have the mrs read this description. All they keep saying is "its bad" and too me i have no idea how bad its describing. On a scale of 1 to 10 how far in the "you're fucked" category am i?

7lcfqoz.jpg
Click to expand...



your doomed your gonna know when its gonna rain the rest of your life
 
I had a similar experience to some of the people on here. In Oct 2007 I was just standing there, turned to look behind me and about hit the floor when it popped. Had out patient surgery exactly 2 weeks later. I used the crutches for less than 24 hrs, didnt take a single pain pill and was back to work in 5 days but i easily could have went back to work in 2 days. Went in 2 weeks later for a post op with the Doc, he did all of his tests for joint movement and we both agreed that me coming back for any sort of future checkups would be a waste of both of our time. That was my right knee, I havent had a single issue with it since the surgery but i know that at some point my left knee is gonna require some attention.

FYI, I cannot speak highly enough about the Toledo Orthpedics Group.
 
I just has surgery for the exact same thing, exactly one month ago. The first day and a half I was on crutches, been walking ever since. I did a lot of stupid shit in the first week like traveling 2 states away, spending 12 hours on the dyno, travelling back and marathon on the car to make the Milan Heads up race.....which took its toll on me after we ran the final at 4:15am. It swelled up like a balloon and turned black and blue, but that was all my fault. They gave me an intercooler/ice bucket pump thing with a bladder that goes around your knee. Once I quit fucking around and started using that regularly and doing the proper exercises it seems to be doing better. Uneven ground or stairs are still a mf'r now. I go back to the doc on Monday and they will most likely put me on phys therapy.

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Quick86 said:
Thanks for the advice fellas.

Nick - have the Mrs read this description. All they keep saying is "its bad" and too me I have no idea how bad its describing. On a scale of 1 to 10 how far in the "you're fucked" category am I?

7lcFQOz.jpg
Click to expand...

All things considered, I don't think a meniscal tear could ever be that bad. A torn ligament or tendon is a much bigger issue (and your note says both are fine), but even those are treatable with surgery and physical therapy. The difference is to completely heal from that you're talking 6 -12 months, depending on how hard you push yourself. For the type of surgery you're talking about, it's more like a week or two to be up and around. Don't let all the big fancy medical words freak you out. Your note says all of your major tendons and ligaments (patellar, ACL, MCL, PCL, etc.) are intact and it's just your meniscus.

My advice: Hit up Redbox for a couple movie, keep your computer near by and post up on the couch for 24 hours. You'll probably have your first PT appointment within a couple of days at most, and by then you can start limping around with the help of crutches as needed. Within a week at most I'd guess you'll ditch the crutches and comfortably hobble around.
 
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