Torn meniscus

Do you know what treatment is prescribed for a longitudinal tear of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus?

[Dr_Veena]

Hi,
    Thanks for writing in. Meniscal repairs can be done by open or arthroscopic methods. In this again we have repair of torn meniscus or removal of the damaged part of the meniscus.Classically, meniscal repair is reserved for young, compliant patients with acute (< 8 weeks) peripheral longitudinal tears which lie within the vascular zone. (the so called red zone as opposed to inner white zone that does not have a good blood supply) of the meniscus and occur in otherwise stable or concomitantly reconstructed knees .

The open technique has been advocated for vertical tears of the posterior horn of the lateral and medial menisci within 1-2 mm of the meniscosynovial junction, where visualisation with the arthroscope is difficult.

In all cases the torn surfaces of the meniscus are debrided of scar tissue and fibrin clot can be placed in situ(4) before the sutures are tied to enhance healing.
All the best.