The meniscus is a cshaped piece of cartilage in the knee that cushions and acts as a shock absorber between your thigh bone femur and shin bone tibia. Torn meniscus exercises the good, the bad, the ugly oh my. The outer parts have adequate blood supply, but the middle and inner parts have poor blood supply. Rest and elevate the knee when not doing your rehabilitation exercises. Your rehabilitation begins once you arrive home from surgery. A coordinated program of physical therapy and home exercises can advance healing in your knee and help you return to desired activities. Find out when it helps, what to expect, and how long youll need to do it for. By the end of this phase you should have nearly full ability to bend and straighten your knee. The outer onethird of the meniscus has a rich blood supply. Articular cartilage is made up of collagen, proteoglycans and water and lines. Rehabilitation protocol for meniscus repair this protocol is intended to guide clinicians and patients through the postoperative course for a meniscus repair. The meniscus is a cshaped piece of cartilage in the knee that cushions and acts as a.
Suggestions for some daily stretches to start with at home. Your orthopaedic surgeon or physical therapist may recommend that you exercise for approximately 20 to 30 minutes, 2 or 3 times a day. Avoid using stairstepper machines, doing deep knee bends and squats. Torn meniscus exercises the good, the bad, the ugly oh.
Meniscal repairs located in the vascular zones of the periphery or outer third of the meniscus are progressed more rapidly than those repairs that are. The orthopedic surgeon may modify the time frames and weight bearing status, as necessary, to allow adequate healing time. Isometric or static quadriceps exercises can begin. As reported by majewski, injuries to the menisci are the second most common injury to the knee, with an incidence of 12% to 14% and a prevalence of 61 cases per 100,000 persons6. Knee arthroscopy exercise guide regular exercise to restore strength and mobility to your knee is important for your full recovery after arthroscopic surgery. Work with your doctor to plan a rehabilitation rehab program that helps you regain as much. Do this exercise if you are unable to extend your knee. The gundersen sports medicine meniscus repair rehabilitation program is an. You have both an inner medial and outer lateral meniscus that help distribute the forces in the knee when you are weightbearing. Proprioception and balance exercises are possible to do only. Gallandkirby acl reconstruction with meniscus repair postsurgical rehabilitation protocol postop days 1 14 dressing. For most tears, some simple exercises can help maintain muscle strength in the front of the thigh quadriceps, back of the thigh hamstr.
Here we outline some rehabilitation exercises which may form part of a meniscus injury rehabilitation program. Rehabilitation exercises a meniscus tear is a common knee joint injury. Jan 21, 20 the rehabilitation treatment begins from the first postoperative day with the pharmacological pain control, the resolution of swelling and individual exercises programs, to restore, as soon as possible and carefully, knee joint mobility, muscular forces, and physiological gait4,43. Be sure to rotate your leg outward laterally slightly to gain a better activation of the medial inner side of the quadriceps. Work with your doctor to plan a rehabilitation rehab program that helps you regain as much strength and flexibility in your knee as possible. Meniscus repair rehabilitation program gundersen health system. Evidence based management of meniscal tears kenneth g. Nov 16, 2016 torn knee meniscus exercises include mobility, stretching, strengthening and sports specific exercises. These may include cardiovascular fitness, strengthening exercises for weak muscles, stretches for tight structures andor exercises to improve your movement control.
When and where you start rehabilitation will depend on whether you have. The repaired meniscus would benefit from weight bearing forces to compress and approximate the edges of the early repair. Torn knee meniscus exercises include mobility, stretching, strengthening and sports specific exercises. Work with your doctor to plan a rehabilitation rehab program that helps you regain as much strength. Manual stretching for extension with overpressure or recurvatum. There is one on the inside of the knee medial and one on the outside lateral. After meniscal surgery, rehabilitation with a physical therapist or athletic trainer is needed to restore range of motion, strength, movement control and guide the athletes return to sport. Postoperative knee meniscus repair rehabilitation protocol from san francisco orthopaedic sports medicine surgeon dr. Gills office or your physical therapist if you are having a problem with your. This concept is useful during rehabilitation of the repaired meniscus.
Be sure to rotate your leg outward laterally slightly to gain a better activation of the medial inner side of the. Nov 16, 2016 in the early stages of torn meniscus rehabilitation simple range of motion can begin, but within the limits of pain. The thick, abnormal shape of a discoid meniscus makes it more likely to get stuck in the knee or tear. Knee flexion and extension with the aim of maintaining range of motion to the injured knee. Knee meniscus repair post operative rehabilitation protocol. A discoid meniscus is abnormally shaped and more prone to injury than a normal meniscus. Meniscus tear rehabilitation and exercises whatever the form of meniscus treatment, rehab is must for a patient to fully recover from the meniscal tear. While lying on your back, place a rolledup towel under the heel of your injured leg so the heel is about 6 inches off the ground. This protocol is a guideline for your rehabilitation after arthroscopic knee surgery. For example, younger people and those whove experienced a traumatic injury are more likely to require surgery than older people who have a chronic meniscus. These will be all the required exercises needed until you are seen by your physical therapist in the of. When the meniscus root is repaired there will be a prolonged. Common tears include longitudinal, parrotbeak, flap, bucket handle, and mixedcomplex.
Lowe this rehabilitation protocol was developed for patients who have isolated meniscal repairs. Work with your doctor to plan a rehabilitation rehab program that helps you regain as much strength and. Knee meniscus repair post operative rehabilitation. Meniscus repair rehabilitation the following protocol is a guideline for rehabilitation following meniscus repair. Physical therapy pt can be useful for a torn meniscus whether or not you have surgery. The meniscus is a wedgeshaped piece of cartilage that sits in between the bones of the knee. Diminish inflammation and swelling restore rom full knee ext, knee flex to 90.
Jan 16, 2016 postoperative knee meniscus repair rehabilitation protocol from san francisco orthopaedic sports medicine surgeon dr. How well the knee will heal and whether surgery will be needed depends in large part on the type of tear see figure in appendix and how bad the tear is. Anterior cruciate ligament acl and meniscus repair rehabilitation protocol general notes. The medial meniscus is semicircular in shape and the lateral meniscus is almost a. Op rehabilitation protocol the following is a protocol for postoperative patients following an isolated meniscus repair. You may do the rest of the exercises when the pain in your knee has decreased. A meniscus tear can cause varied complications in a person and lead to a whole lot of pain. You may ride the stationary bicycle daily for 10 to 20 minutes. Meniscus tear rehabilitation exercises health hearty.
This blood supply is necessary for a tear or a repair to heal. Do the exercises daily for the first week, then decrease to every other day when using ankle weights. That is why it becomes important to carry through certain rehabilitation exercises to help in speeding the healing process of the meniscus muscle and bring about relief. The video contains great information about the meniscus anatomy too, and has all the right exercises, which you can easily do at home with no equipment, following a meniscal injury or meniscus surgery. Here we outline some exercises for a torn meniscus injury. Talk to your doctor or physical therapist about which exercises will best help you meet your rehabilitation goals. If you have questions, contact the referring physician. Department of rehabilitation medicine jaspal r singh, m. Anterior cruciate ligament acl and meniscus repair. Summary table post op phasegoals therapeutic exercise precautions phase i weeks 14 goals. Home exercises ankle pumps 2 sets of 10, 23 times per day. Do this exercise if you are unable to extend your knee fully. The protocol may be modified depending on the location and extent of the meniscal tear and subsequent repair. The decision by the surgeon to repair or remove is based primarily on the location of the meniscal tear.
The menisci are wedge shaped, being thinner toward the center of the. It will consist of a series of progressive weight bearing, range of motion, muscle strengthening and cardiovascular exercises. Physical therapy exercises for a knee meniscus tear. Quadriceps strengthening, making sure that closed chain exercises occur. Meniscus rehab exercises the physical therapy advisor. The primary goal of this protocol is to protect the reconstruction while steadily progressing towards and ultimately achieving. We have remained at the forefront of medicine by fostering a culture of collaboration, pushing the boundaries of medical research, educating the brightest medical minds and maintaining an unwavering commitment to the diverse communities we serve. Apr 07, 2019 rehab protocol for meniscus tear treatment. Physical therapy pt and exercises for a meniscus tear rehab. Remember to check out this great exercise video for torn meniscus exercises, and you can also read more articles about meniscus injuries. Rehabilitation guidelines for meniscal repair uw health. The menisci are cshaped tissues inside the knee joint, located between the thigh femoral and shin tibia cartilage surfaces.
As tolerated should be understood to include with safety for the reconstructionrepair. The treatment chosen will depend on the location of the tear, the athletes sport, ligamentous stability of the knee and any associated injury. It is important to begin working on range of motion right after surgery as this will help in your overall recovery. In case of majority of meniscus tears, few easy exercises can help preserve muscle strength in the front thigh or quadriceps, back of. Madison, wi 53718 rehabilitation guidelines for meniscal repair there are two types of cartilage in the knee, articular cartilage and meniscus cartilage. Your physiotherapist has diagnosed you with a degenerative meniscal tear. There is a growing body of evidence surrounding the pathology and treatment of meniscal root tears. Rehabilitation guidelines for meniscal repair of root and. To avoid placing stress on the meniscus repair, do not bend. Focusing on secondary and support muscles to improve stability during movements and performance. Meniscal cartilage tear exercises summit medical group. Brotzman sb, wilk ke, clinical orthopeadic rehabilitation.
Newyorkpresbyterian hospital weill cornell medical center 525 east 68th street, baker 16 new york, ny 10065 tel. Change dressing, keep wound covered, continue ted hose pod 710. Rehabilitation protocol for meniscal repair rehabilitation guidelines. Knee rehabilitation exercises to ensure that this program is safe and effective for you, it should be performed under your doctors supervision. In his epidemiological study conducted on 17,397 patients in germany and switzerland, soccer, followed by skiing, are the sport with an increased risk of meniscal injuries. The primary goal of this protocol is to protect the repair while steadily progressing towards and ultimately achieving preinjury level of activity. To ensure that this program is safe and effective for you, it should be performed under your doctors supervision.
Meniscus repair rehabilitation protocol the following is a protocol for postoperative patients following meniscus repair. In the early stages of torn meniscus rehabilitation simple range of motion can begin, but within the limits of pain. How well the knee will heal and whether surgery will be needed depends in large part on the type of tear and how bad the tear is. Torn knee meniscus exercises mobility, strengthening. These exercises should be started the day after surgery. Sports injury medicine department 9250 sw hall blvd. No active hamstring exercises electrical stimulation in full extension with quad sets and slr.
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