Is it possible to treat meniscus diseases without surgery

The knee meniscus plays an important role in the normal functioning of the lower limbs of a person. More often with the problems of this intraarticular ligament, people who professionally engage in sports, as well as those whose legs are subjected to increased stress.

Structure and function of the knee joint meniscus

Its structure is similar to any cartilaginous tissue in the human body,it contains up to 70% of collagen, about half a percent of elastin and up to 15% of extracellular matrix protein substances. Collagen fibers are located mainly in a circle, and at the surface they are weaved into a network, which ensures the stability of the structure to shear. In the meniscus, there are practically no blood vessels.

The knee menisci are located between the hyaline cartilage covered articular surfaces of the tibia and femur.The following anatomical parts are conspicuously distinguished: the horn, the anterior horn and the body.A horn is the place of attachment to the capsule of the joint, tibia or femur.

There are two varieties of the meniscus:

1. Internal or medialhas the shape of the letter C, is attached to the tibia and the joint capsule. In its middle part, the collateral ligament forms a thickening. It is more often exposed to injuries due to a strong connection with the capsule of the joint.
2. Lateral or externalhas the form of a semicircle of regular shape, is located on the outer upper part of the tibia, between the attachment points there is a small distance between them. Approximately 5 people out of 100 have an abnormal discoid shape of the lateral meniscus, this pathology does not require medical intervention, if not causing inconvenience.

Functions of the knee joint meniscus

They have the following functions:

1. Amortization- during movement, the shape and thickness of the organ change, which allows to reduce the dynamic and static loads on the cartilage.
2. Stabilization of the joint and restriction of excessive mobility- the presence of strong joints with a capsule and joint ligaments allows them to participate in limiting excessive mobility.
3. Reduction of frictionbetween the surfaces of bones entering the joint - during flexion and extension the body takes the most part of friction while retaining the joint surfaces and ligaments.

Causes of the development of diseases

Most often meniscus lesions occur with trauma.

There are several main reasons for the development of diseases of these structures:

• turn the knee bent at the knee with simultaneous loading on it (when driving on skates or skiing, playing football or other outdoor games);
• vertical fall on straightened legs (jumping into the water or from a height);
• direct sharp bumps in the knee area, under which the leg turns inward or outward;
• presence of flat feet;
• congenital pathologies of the knee joint and the ligament retaining it;
• degenerative-dystrophic processes in the cartilaginous tissue;
• chronic diseases of knee joints (rheumatism, gout).

Types of damage

It is possible to identify acute traumatic injuries and chronic pathologies.

Acute traumatic injury

The main cause of injury is an excessive or abruptly appearing load,on which the joint is not designed. The lateral, medial meniscus or both can suffer at once (combined trauma).

Depending on the damage, you can distinguish:

• compression or pinching of the outer meniscus;
• separation of a certain part (anterior or posterior horns or body);
• longitudinal or transverse rupture of any horn or internal part of its body;
• Combined injury (simultaneous damage to the inner and outer parts).

Chronic pathologies

Chronic pathologies (meniscopathies) develop as a result of constantly repeated microtraumas of cartilaginous tissue, which eventually lead to the development of degenerative changes in it.

There are two types of chronic meniscopathies:

• degenerative degeneration of the internal meniscus;
• cystic degeneration.

Symptoms of damage

In most cases, only one joint is injured.

Most often, the symptoms of meniscus damage depend on the time elapsed since the injury:

1. Immediately at the time of injury, a click is heard and an attack of acute pain develops, which can practically immobilize a person.
2. The pain begins to weaken in a few minutes, but the next day appears during movement, making it impossible.
3. Edema, local hyperemia (redness) and hyperthermia (increase in the temperature of the skin) appear on day 2-3 after acute injury.
4. If the treatment is not started within 7-14 days, the process will pass to the chronic stage, where the periods of remission alternate with the exacerbations of the disease.

Methods of treatment

With injuries to the knee joint meniscus without medical assistance can not do.

When it is possible to cure meniscus injuries with the help of conservative methods

If the injury is small, conservative treatment may be prescribed, which includes:

• immobilization of the joint(immobilization) with a plaster bandage;
• drug therapy- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (meloxicam, movalis, diclofenac, tilfen, ibuprofen), chondroprotectors (chondroitin sulfate or glucosamine), intraarticular injections (ostenil), grindings with creams or ointments (ketoral, voltaren, tentorium);
• after the removal of gypsum occursrehabilitation period, in which the patient is assigned a complex of exercise therapy and physiotherapeutic procedures.

Surgical intervention

For significant lesions, surgical intervention (arthroscopy) may be required.

The operation is necessary when:

• crushing of the knee meniscus;
• a break of more than 10 mm in length;
• displacement;
• presence of hemorrhage in the cavity of the knee joint;
• complete detachment of the body or horns.

Traditional methods of treatment

Methods of traditional medicine is best used only after consultation with a doctor as an auxiliary treatment.

Traditional medicine recommends compresses:

• from honey in half with alcohol;
• from medical bile;
• from fresh burdock leaf;
• from the ground onions with sugar (two onions and one spoonful of sugar).

To prevent injuries to knee joints, special knee pads are used during sports.If the work is associated with increased stress on the knee joints, you can also use elastic bandage or knee pads. Also, in order to reduce the risk of injury, there is a set of exercises that strengthen the quadriceps muscle of the hip, which is responsible for stabilizing the knee.

At the first symptoms of meniscus damage, consult a doctor to prevent the development of a chronic disease. The doctor will prescribe the necessary treatment and medications for you.