Comparison of Clinical and Radiologic Results Between Partial Meniscectomy and Refixation of Medial Meniscus Posterior Root Tears: A Minimum 5-Year Follow-up

Medial Meniscus Posterior Root Repair Using a Transtibial Technique

“…If left untreated, meniscal extrusion can occur rendering the meniscus nonfunctional resulting in degenerative arthritis of the knee. 3,4 Chung et al 5 compared the outcomes of 37 patients with meniscal root repairs with 20 patients who underwent partial meniscectomies. The repair group had superior subjective knee rating and knee function scores with less radiographic progression of arthritis.…”

Meniscal root tears: a silent epidemic

“…Chung et al 38 reported that medial meniscal root repairs slowed the progression of intra-articular arthritic changes compared with patients who underwent a partial meniscectomy 38. Along with the overall difference in arthritic changes, 35% of the patients who had undergone a meniscectomy to treat a meniscal root tear underwent conversion to total knee arthroplasty (TKA) by 5-year follow-up, whereas none of the patients who had undergone a meniscal root repair underwent conversion to TKA 38.…”

“…Chung et al 38 reported that medial meniscal root repairs slowed the progression of intra-articular arthritic changes compared with patients who underwent a partial meniscectomy 38. Along with the overall difference in arthritic changes, 35% of the patients who had undergone a meniscectomy to treat a meniscal root tear underwent conversion to total knee arthroplasty (TKA) by 5-year follow-up, whereas none of the patients who had undergone a meniscal root repair underwent conversion to TKA 38. To further support the importance of recognising and repairing meniscal root tears, Krych et al 39 reported poor clinical outcomes, worsening of OA and a 31% conversion to arthroplasty in 52 patients treated conservatively for posterior root tears at a mean follow-up of 5 years.…”

A Transosseous Bone Bridge Repair for Posterior Horn Meniscal Root Tears During Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

“…4 Biomechanical studies have shown that these injuries to the medial and lateral posterior horns lead to significantly increased meniscal extrusion and altered tibiofemoral contact pressures that can match that of the knee following complete meniscectomy. 5,6 While meniscectomy can be performed in cases of root tears, Chung et al 7 demonstrated in a comparative study of meniscectomies versus posterior medial meniscus root repairs significantly greater progression of degenerative changes of the articular surface in the meniscectomy group at 5-year followup. Therefore, meniscal root tears should be repaired whenever possible to more closely restore knee biomechanics and delay the onset of degenerative changes.…”