medial meniscus tear & arthroscopy

[Guest guest]

It happened in Udhva Dhanurasana pulling the

right leg into the groin 6 weeks ago. There is solid

pain anytime the right knee is pulled in with the

right hip in external rotation eg, padmasana, janu

sirsana, baddha konasana. Its not getting better despite

laying off these aggravating postures completely. The

MRI shows an intra-cartilagenous tear extending to

within 1 mm of the articular surface of the posterior

horn of the medial meniscus. A highly respected

orthopedic surgeon recommends arthroscopic intervention.

Does anyone have experience with this injury, this

type of surgery, and how long before they were

practicing ashtanga again?

[Guest guest]

<< Does anyone have experience with this

injury, this type of surgery,....>><br><br>no i

haven't, thank goodness. while the opinion of the

orthopedic surgeon is likely going to be the right answer,

you have to remember that, sometimes asking a surgeon

if surgery is needed is like asking your barber if

you need a haircut, or asking your broker if this is

a good time to get into the market.<br> i don't

know that there are really any other good options.

even that good old 'tincture of time' may not work too

well for meniscal and cartilaginous tears. ortho is

not my turf though, so ask everyone you know about

any experiences they may have had. definitely get a

second opinion and if you can, see a physical therapist

to ask about non surgical approaches. if you know

any one associated with a college sports team, see if

they can check with the team doctor about their

impressions. good luck. <br>here's some helpful links. the

first one has some info on non operative options and

their relative pluses and minuses compared to surgical

options<br><br><a

href=http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/2000/03_00/bernstein.htm

target=new>http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/2000/03_00/bernstein.htm</a><br><\

br><a href=http://www.arthroscopy.com/sp05005.htm

target=new>http://www.arthroscopy.com/sp05005.htm</a><br><br><a

href=http://www.jointhealing.com/pages/knee/meniscus_tx.html

target=new>http://www.jointhealing.com/pages/knee/meniscus_tx.html</a><br><br>he\

re's a link to an orthopedic message board, there were

about ten messages on meniscal

tears<br><a href=http://www.arthroscopy.com/wwwboard/messages/3865.shtml

target=new>http://www.arthroscopy.com/wwwboard/messages/3865.shtml</a>

[Guest guest]

I had a medial meniscus tear earlier this year

(not exactly the same sort). While I hesitate to say

whether surgery is right for you, I can say what happened

to me.<br><br>The surgeon had to remove most of my

menisus (so no more recreational running, unless I wan

textra risk of arthritis later in life). I was in bed

for the better part of a week, on crutches for a few

days after that, and generally miserable and unable to

practice for over three weeks. When my knee was able to

bend enough to permit a jump-through, I began practice

of Primary series, at first substituting

paschimottanasa for anything that required lots of bend in the

leg. The postures just flowed back one by one: it was

awesome! About eight weeks after surgery I felt great. Now

after nearly six months the knee works better than it

ever has.<br><br>If you have a meniscus repair rather

than a removal, your initial recovery may take longer

(I think you get put in an immobilizer) but you have

less risk of arthritis later on.<br><br>Try to

enjoy.<br>Homer

[Guest guest]

Homer can you tell me more about your surgeon's

recommendation about running later in life after a partial

menisectomy. I had the procedure yesterday and my knee is

about the size of a softball (usually more like a

tennis ball). Ouch. Namaste, E&SJ

[Guest guest]

SympatheticJoy, I sympathise with your

plight!<br><br>I had lots of my left meniscus removed, so there is

very little cushion remaining for the that leg. The

surgeon recommended that I limit activities that involve

"banging feet on the ground" (e.g. running). He seemed

hesitant to ban running completely, thinking maybe it was

very important to me (which is no longer the case

since the discovery of ashtanga). He did say that the

long-term risk of arthritis would be increased considerably

if I ran regularly. As for other cardiovasuclar

exercise, he said that walking would be OK, and that

cycling and swimming would be great.<br><br>I haven't run

more than a couple of steps since April, so I can't

say whether a five-mile run would hurt, but

considering how good your knee will feel in a few months you

may not experience immediate pain should you take up

running again. Long-term is the problem.<br><br>Start

recovery now. Contract your quads as much as possible --

you won't hurt yourself even if it feels like you are

tearing something up inside. Lift weights as soon as they

let you. Standing postures are great (as soon as the

doctor lets you stand). Try a straight-leg version of

the primary series (lots of paschimottanasana

substituted for bent-leg forward bends). Instead of vinyasa

consider rolling over onto your stomach and doing some

sort of cobra, then rolling back, sitting up and

heading into next posture. For now maybe stop after

navasana.<br><br>Hope this helps. Enjoy.<br><br>Homer

[Guest guest]

I notice you are up at 4am. Dont worry, life will

go on.I had my right knee done ~8yrs ago, 80%

menisci gone and a 2cm divit on the femoral head buffed

up and kneecap scraped. @ yrs later, 20% menisci

removed from left knee. My left knee is pretty much

normal, my right knee has to be babysat. I continue to

run but much less, 3x/wk, less mileage and mostly

trails, dirt roads, fields etc. I also abuse it in the

mountains on a regular basis. On mountain days I use

aspirin. It also affects my yoga. anything requiring

extreme flexion is difficult. Much closer to lotus on

left side. In summary MY EXPERIENCE is if you have

lots of catilidge left you may not have too much

problem. Be patient, use your head, create your own "abuse

index" and do your yoga no matter what your level of

competency is. As far as I can tell, if you want to remain

active in your twilight years you have to learn to deal

with less than perfection. I wish I had started yoga

when I was younger but to paraphrase laprodox I

probably would have been too stupid to truly appreciate

it. Good luck and grow from the experience.<br>PS If

I need a knee replacement I will let you know so

you can disregard my comments