Meniscus Tear Recovery time?

[tonysk83]

I know some of you here have torn it since it is a pretty common thing. I had surgery last wednesday on it. Doctor took some off on my outside right knee, plus a whole thing of extra cartilage attached to my meniscus. I am wondering how long till you were up and playing again? It has been a week so far and I can still barely walk. My range of movement still sucks obviously, can fully straighten it, but going back is still very limitied. I really hope I can play again in 2 or 3 weeks, so I can get back to playing alittle this season.

[TennisDog]

Your doctor would probably know better than a bunch of strangers on a tennis forum

[tonysk83]

He said whenever you feel ready, just don't rush it. That is why I am asking how long other peoples recoveries were.

[theace21]

I know some of you here have torn it since it is a pretty common thing. I had surgery last wednesday on it. Doctor took some off on my outside right knee, plus a whole thing of extra cartilage attached to my meniscus. I am wondering how long till you were up and playing again? It has been a week so far and I can still barely walk. My range of movement still sucks obviously, can fully straighten it, but going back is still very limitied. I really hope I can play again in 2 or 3 weeks, so I can get back to playing alittle this season.
Everybody is a little different. Some bounce back as quick as 2-3 weeks, others not so fast. Follow your doctors advice!!! I had my scoped in August, the work was a little more than a torn meniscus. It has been slow, but luckly my physical therapist was an awesome guy. He follows the doctors advice/reccomendation, but seeing him 3 days a week, he was so helpful in watching my progress - strength and flexiblity. He knows what you can and can't do. Get a good physical therapist!!!

Good Luck.

[atatu]

It depends on your age, among other things. For me, it was about six months, but I didn't have surgery, I just let it smooth itself out on the advice of my orthopedic surgeon. I was 40 at the time.

[armstrong]

I am 26 now, but had a partial lateral menisectomy at age 22. Standard recovery is 4-6 weeks depending on amount taken and previous activity level. I was lucky enough to be playing college tennis at the time so had access to athletic trainers five days a week, two hours a day for rehab. It was slow (I had a lot removed). It took me about 6 months to be pain free while participating in any athletic activity, but I was playing and rehabbing at the same time so I gave it little time to fully heal. I started rehab a week after surgery and was actually walking the same day. Range of motion takes a while to come back (mine will never be the same). Good luck and work hard in rehab.

[jaykay]

I had menisectomy done via arthroscopy when I was 15 (I am 33 now). It heals faster when you are young, of course... and convalescence varies wildly from person to person, but it took me a good 3 months to get back to some semblance of normalcy... though my knee was never the same as before.

Keep in mind that when any part of the body goes under the knife, 2 things occur:
a) scarring, which inhibits motion, and
b) muscle atrophy

Both can be reversed by following a strict and disciplined rehab regimen. I don't mean to discourage you, but 2-3 wks sounds a tad aggressive and given that you presumably want to play this sport at a competitive level lifelong, you may want to wait till your heal better and regain your muscle mass/density to the maximum extent possible.

Your rehab therapist and your ortho surgeon will know best.

Cheers,
jaykay.

Zen Wisdom of the Day: "There are only two four letter words that are offensive to men -'don't' and 'stop', unless they are used together == 'don't stop'!"

[tonysk83]

Yeah, three weeks probably is now shorter then I thought. I think it is going to be more like 5-6 weeks now. It just sucks as I have been working all fall and winter for tennis, then before tryouts I sprain my ankle very bad, get it all healed up and play for a week and hurt my knee, was out for 2 weeks before the surgery, plus the recovery time. It is just frustrating, also, this is really the first time I have ever been injured for a prolonged period.

[Zverev]

Yeah, three weeks probably is now shorter then I thought. I think it is going to be more like 5-6 weeks now. It just sucks as I have been working all fall and winter for tennis, then before tryouts I sprain my ankle very bad, get it all healed up and play for a week and hurt my knee, was out for 2 weeks before the surgery, plus the recovery time. It is just frustrating, also, this is really the first time I have ever been injured for a prolonged period.
how did you tear your meniscus?
what's your age?
why didn't you have it repaired?

[El Diablo]

Orthopedic textbooks recommend a little light jogging 3 months after meniscus surgery and full activity 6 months after....biggest problem with this procedure is people rushing back to activity....subsequent failure of the meniscus and repeated attempts at surgery are common.

[tonysk83]

how did you tear your meniscus?
what's your age?
why didn't you have it repaired?

Tore it they think back in November playing tennis, twisted my leg and jumped for an overhead, but it never bothered me after that until I was playing basketball and got hit in my knee and twisted it, and re-injured it, but it wasn't bad and I felt fine the next day. So then I played tennis and it locked up on me and I couldn't move my knee at all. So we went to the doctor, got another MRI and I had surgery.

I am 17.

Repairing it wasn't possible, not enough blood supply by it. I also had another thing wrong with it though. As most of you know the meniscus is suppose to be a C shape. Mine was a solid circle. The inside of the C was covered by a thin membrane that was also removed. He said if I hadn't had that problem, I probably would of never tore it in the first place.

BTW, 3 months till jogging and 6 months till full activity seems way too long, that seems more like the time period for a repair, not just removing parts. Everything I have read online from reliable sources says 3-6 weeks.

Another thing that concerns me that we need to talk to the doctor about when we see him in my upcoming appointment is the fact that I needed crutches for like 5 days after the surgery, and I have had to use 1 crutch for two weeks now and I still can't walk with much stability without any walking aid, ahh just frustrated by not being able to play this tennis season.

[jaykay]

Hv patience, my friend. I do know how you feel.

But I implore you to learn from my bad experiences --- I am 30+ now and I am paying the price for not being patient & disciplined enough to let me knee heal completely when I sustained the injury first when I was a teenager. I had a serious ACL injury and subsequent surgery to reconstruct the torn ACL. I also have mild onset of early osteoarthritis, which I'd like to think that I am keeping in check (or perhaps reversing?) with glucosamine/chondroitin supplements.

Moral of the story: Trust me - it IS worth the wait.

Hang in there.

[Pancho]

You need to be patient to let your knee heal. Do not play unless there is absolutely no pain.

[montx]

Yes I agree, give it time, do physiotherapy for about six to eight months, do weights, then gradually pick up sports again. Its tough but worth it to do it slowly.

[Zverev]

Tore it they think back in November playing tennis, twisted my leg and jumped for an overhead, but it never bothered me after that until I was playing basketball and got hit in my knee and twisted it, and re-injured it, but it wasn't bad and I felt fine the next day. So then I played tennis and it locked up on me and I couldn't move my knee at all. So we went to the doctor, got another MRI and I had surgery.

I am 17.

Repairing it wasn't possible, not enough blood supply by it. I also had another thing wrong with it though. As most of you know the meniscus is suppose to be a C shape. Mine was a solid circle. The inside of the C was covered by a thin membrane that was also removed. He said if I hadn't had that problem, I probably would of never tore it in the first place.

BTW, 3 months till jogging and 6 months till full activity seems way too long, that seems more like the time period for a repair, not just removing parts. Everything I have read online from reliable sources says 3-6 weeks.

Another thing that concerns me that we need to talk to the doctor about when we see him in my upcoming appointment is the fact that I needed crutches for like 5 days after the surgery, and I have had to use 1 crutch for two weeks now and I still can't walk with much stability without any walking aid, ahh just frustrated by not being able to play this tennis season.
Still only April, I am sure you will get much better by May.
They will probably advise you that can start slow even with some pain still around. Knee exercises and stuff.
Train your upper body meanwhile.
You are right, it always takes longer than they tell you.
Just hang in there. I am sure you can start hitting the wall and ball machine already in June, and some hitting with partners by July/August.
Remember not to chase that angle or drop ball, just say "good shot"
And don't go for comps this year, just keep yourself in shape for next one.

Disclaimer: If you don't like any of the advices, please, disregard.
I am not a doctor. Just similar experience.

[Zverev]

double post