First Line Management

For both types of tears, conservative treatments, especially exercise therapy, have shown promise. In some cases, surgery may not even be superior to non-operative management, but this very much depends on the location of the injury, where lateral tears having a higher healing potential. Starting with exercise therapy may avoid the need for surgery in up to 75% of younger patients, and evidence has shown that delays in surgery produced no worse results in recovery than immediate surgery

Surgical Considerations

For younger, active populations, meniscal repairs are generally preferred if the tear is repairable. However, there are still risks of retearing the sutured meniscus, which can require starting rehabilitation again. For middle-aged and older patients with degenerative tears, exercise is often the first-line treatment as surgery can lead to an accelerated need for a total knee replacement.

Treatment and management

Exercise for meniscal tears doesn’t necessarily “heal” the meniscus but addresses symptoms by improving knee function and control. It helps individuals regain mobility and confidence in their knee. For degenerative tears, it’s often more about managing symptoms than fixing the tear itself.

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