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Torn Meniscus

The menisci are C-shaped rubbery cartilage discs present in pairs between the bones within the knee joint. They are known as the medial meniscus and the lateral meniscus depending on whether we’re referring to the meniscus on the inside of the knee (medial) or the outside of the knee (lateral).

If you’re suffering from a meniscal tear then you’re not alone – it is estimated that 6 in 1000 people suffer from this knee pain here in Australia, with men being more likely to sustain this injury than women by 2.5 to 4 times, and the peak age of injury being between 20 and 29 years.

Why is your meniscus important?

Your knee joint is one of the strongest joints in your body, taking on and transmitting forces equal to 2-3 times your body weight during regular walking – and even more so during running sports, stairs and the like. The menisci play an important role in this, working to absorb shock and distribute load through the joint, improve knee stability, and helping control knee flexion and extension movements – to name a few.

What causes a meniscus to tear?

Meniscus tears can occur from:

  • Excessive forces within the knee joint, between the thigh bone (femur) and shin bone (tibia). This often results from twisting the knee while it is firmly planted on the ground and flexed, making it a common sporting injury in young adults. This includes sports that involve quick pivots or changes in direction, fast-paced sports like soccer and basketball, and those that require fast movements during activities that bend and straighten the knee
  • Age-related degeneration. This occurs gradually over time in older adults, as a result of the force on the knee joint over a number of years. This may occur alongside other problems within the knee joint like osteoarthritis
  • The meniscus may also be torn simultaneously with other knee injuries like anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears, which occur in 50% of meniscus tears

Symptoms & diagnosis

Sudden meniscal tears cause pain and inflammation within the knee joint, stiffness and instability, which is aggravated when the knee is bent and straightened. You may feel or hear a popping when the injury first occurs. If your tear is degenerative in nature, then your symptoms may start with a dull ache or niggling at the knee before worsening.

If you suspect you have torn your meniscus, it’s important to have it diagnosed professionally immediately to confirm the diagnosis and rule out other causes of knee pain like ligament tears, tendon strains and more. This is something that your My FootDr podiatrist can help with.

Treating meniscal tears

Before you’re able to get in to see your podiatrist, you can help relieve the painful symptoms by using:

  • Rest (with weight bearing as tolerated or with crutches)
  • Ice
  • Compression bandaging
  • Elevation of the affected limb to minimise acute swelling and inflammation

Next, your treatment will depend on the severity of the tear and its location, as different areas have differences in blood supply. Small tears in well-supplied areas respond effectively to regular treatment, while large tears in poorly vascularised areas may need additional measures like surgery. 

Here at My FootDr, we may use a number of treatment strategies as part of your care, ranging from custom foot orthotics to help promote optimal leg alignment and reduce excess strain or forces on the knee joint, to knee bracing and strapping, stretching and strengthening, and ensuring your footwear is offering a good level of stability and support throughout your recovery.

We also recommend partnering with a great physiotherapy team that are experienced in treating meniscal tears. An early assessment will set you on the right track and have you implementing the best strength and conditioning techniques at the right time to maximise your recovery, while helping prevent accidental re-injury or injury worsening.

How We Can Help

Knee Ligament injuries
January 28, 2021

Knee Ligament Injuries - Causes & Treatment

Your knee joint is one of the most complex joints in your body - and takes on an incredible amount of force during movement, even walking transmits two to three times our body weight across the joint.

As such, the knee joint is reinforced by many ligaments (as well as many other tissues) for optimum stability, support and control. When placed under great strain or trauma, these ligaments can become damaged, may partially tear - or may even completely rupture.

What Causes Knee Ligament Injuries?

Excessive force applied to the ligaments, through the knee joint, is the leading cause for injury. Any direct impact or force can do this, like when a soccer ball hits your knee at high speed, or if you’re tackled during a game of rugby and your body is thrust forwards or backwards while your foot is firmly planted on the ground. 

This injury will render the ligaments unable to perform their function to keep the knee joint stable and functioning well. It also causes pain, stiffness, swelling, makes it difficult for you to bend the knee and place weight on the knee, and leaves you generally feeling weak and unstable.

There are two sets of ligaments within the knee specifically that we care for here at My FootDr - the collateral ligaments and the cruciate ligaments.

Cruciate Ligaments

Within your knee joint, you have your anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). They sit within the joint itself, connected to both ends of the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (shin bone). Instead of just connecting directly above and below one another, these two ligaments cross diagonally within the joint. This means that they prevent the bones from sliding forwards or backwards on one another, keeping the bones within the joint connected and intact.

We see a number of ACL injuries in skiing sports, basketball, soccer and other sports that involve sudden stops/starts and changes in direction. PCL injuries tend to occur more in car accidents where the knee or shin bone hits the dashboard, from falling on the knee while it’s bent or any ball sports where the ball hits the shin bone at speed.

Collateral Ligaments

Unlike the cruciate ligaments that are positioned within the knee, the collateral ligaments are positioned on either side of the knee joint medial collateral ligament (MCL) on the inside and on the outside of the knee lateral collateral ligament (LCL). These flat-banded ligaments also connect to both the thigh and shin bones to add stability to the joint and prevent the joint from moving side-to-side excessively, which may otherwise cause significant damage to the joint and dislocation of the structures.

MCL injuries occur when excess force is applied to the outside of the knee joint, pushing in. This may be from a ball during sports, from a car accident, and in combination with cruciate ligament injury. LCL injuries occur when there is trauma to the inside of the knee, which makes them much less common than MCL injuries as the other leg is often protecting the inside of the knee from direct damage. Still, it is very much possible, and happens in sports like soccer and rugby.

How Are Knee Ligament Injuries Treated?

Ligament injuries must be acted upon immediately to produce the best results, as these injuries can otherwise be difficult to heal and longstanding. When ignored, the injuries can also worsen, with a ligament sprain progressing to a tear or worse.

Your My FootDr podiatrist will start by assessing the extent of the damage and your current symptoms, including which other tissues or ligaments may also be simultaneously damaged, as is often the case in knee ligament injuries.

Our goal is to reduce any strain on the damaged structures and create an ideal environment for healing, while preferably keeping you mobile. This may include the use of bracing, offloading pressure from the knee joint with custom foot orthotics (if alignment issues are causing strain on the ligaments) or ankle-foot-orthotics, using supportive and stabilising footwear. As healing progresses, we will gradually introduce a strengthening, flexibility and knee mobility program. 

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Anterior Knee Pain Treatment
December 23, 2015

Anterior Knee Pain Treatment

Patellofemoral pain syndrome describes pain at the front of the knee, which may radiate around the knee or behind the kneecap. The name ‘patellofemoral pain’ simply means pain in the area where the kneecap (patella) connects with the bottom of the thigh bone (femur).

You may have heard this problem being referred to as runner’s knee due to its tendency to affect runners - unfortunately, you don’t have to be a runner to develop this pain and anyone is vulnerable.

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