S.O.O.T. Meniscus Tear Repair

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

Aloha,
Anybody out there have a meniscus repair. I dislocated my knee and tore the meniscus, left knee. The tear is on the left side. Doc elected to repair rather than remove as I'm healthy and want to avoid arthritis later in my goldenness.

Anyways, have any of you undergone such surgery? How did you rehab? Advice etc. would be most appreciated.

On a positive note I'm kicking ass on COD, Adv. Warfare.

On another positive note I had the day before kited Lanes in Head high waves. One of those days that just felt perfect. It was my best session yet here in Maui.

A hui ho!

Nak · Thu Jun 04, 15 5:55 pm

Most of the time this works out well... I had this surgery and sometimes now I feel like a cripple. My kiteboarding is limited, climbing ladders or walking downhill sucks. I still get to ride for now, so that's good. My situation is probably unique, as my bad leg was busted up pretty good when I was run over by a speeding Caddy, hence causing the bad leg. Still, do not skimp on this surgery. Go wherever you have to, spend whatever you have to, but get the best damn surgeon you can. This is not the time to save money.

Please post up later that you're back to 100% after your surgery...

knotwindy · Since 25 Sep 2011 619 Posts Addicted

yup and it is not bedside manner you are looking for,
it is technical skills,
ask for people he has worked on before and find out there results

you are looking for the best mechanic you can find

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my question. S.O.O.T. (sort of on topic.) about my Meniscus.

Dr. Soma is the only orthopedic doc on Maui. He's done a ton of these surgeries and I checked on him through the grape vine here in Wailulku. All reports were good and he has ton's of experience with this type of surgery as Orthopedic Doc's are few. He in my opinion a quality guy and talked me through all the various options. I was comfortable and wanted to start the recovery process quickly. I lucked out and had surgery within 72 hours of my injury. I tore the meniscus about an inch on the left side. The flap was filling the gap and the knee would not extend. Surgery was the only option the choice was between removal and repair.

My injury was a knee dislocation. Top part went forward, meniscus peeled back and filled the gap so that I could not get the knee back in, hurt like a b___h. Thanks to Jason and John at Kanaha for packing my kite, carrying me to my car and taking care of me. Thanks to my girlfriend, ICU critical care nurse for hooking me up with immediate care.

**A note here… I had considered going out at another spot. I'm glad I did not as I would have been alone, maybe one other kiter. If I had gone any other place alone the situation could have been quite more difficult. Crawling over coral is not something I want to do anytime soon. If I had been alone I would have had to dump all of it as I was not able to walk, scary scenario.

He repaired the tear with a a device, new tech, that allowed for less stitches. The whole operation was recorded with pictures during surgery. I'd post them but Dr. Soma is probably gonna put em on his website at some point.

I'm in week three and have just started PT. I have about 20% use of it and I'm on crutches and vicodin with a full knee immobilizer. It's atrophied quite a bit, but PT is helping. I'm doing all straight leg stuff with some 90 deg. movement. It feels good, but hurts after PT, to be expected.

My recovery time would have been less if a removal had been done. 2 to 3 months compare to 4 to 6 with repair. A removal was not done as Dr. Soma thought because of my age and health I was a good candidate for the repair. **The removal would have led to arthritis in the joint and limited the cushioning properties of the meniscus at some point in my goldenness. I told Dr. Soma that I plan on kiting, skiing, and doing my normal stuff. I'm sort of active.

Here's to Rehab! "I ain't gonna go to rehab.. I said, no, no, no!!"

Cheers,
Ron

Snowkitesoldier · Since 14 Nov 2006 72 Posts Boise, Idaho Â

I would strongly,strongly encourage you to fly to Oahu and go to Queens hospital and see Dr. Kimo Harpstrite(a fellow kiter) or depending on which network your insurance provider works with, Dr. Dave Vasconcellos at Kaiser. Dr. Bottonii at Triplpler Army Medical Center is one of the best orthos in the country. I wish you well on your recovery. If you require any additional operations, use the above list.

In the spirit of shared responsibility this is my input.

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

It's going on 3 weeks and I've started PT. My knee is able to go complete extension and about 130 deg. with some pain.
Your advice is greatly valued and I appreciate your time in responding.

I'll keep quiet for now, but let you know how it's going. At this point I'm not pushing it at all. Doing some basic exercises, mostly straight leg stuff and some flexibility stuff with calf raises.

Crutches are good and I'm clear to ride a trainer bike light resistance. I'm doing some upper body stuff, plank, sit ups etc.

The atrophy in my left leg is quite drastic. At least an inch since initial injury.

The emotional part of this injury is the most difficult. The cost of it is a problem as well. My insurance is normal teacher, public employee here in Hi. It's good coverage.

I guess at 51 years of age, 212lbs. and relatively good shape I'm not bombproof. From what I can tell there are several folks who have had this issue with meniscus and or acl as well. Luckily my ACL was good, sprained but good.

Cheers,
R

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

Went in for a visit with Dr. Soma and was am allowed to bear some weight on the knee with crutches. Straight line walking with no twisting.

PTherapist has allowed me to use a bike and some eliptical training as well. My range of motion is normal on extension, but limited on flexion.

I'd like to thank snowsoldier for the advice. In reality I'm unable to afford the trip to Oahu to get the expert advice. If this repair goes south I'll get a second opinion and or remove the Meniscus to get a faster recovery.

pkh · Since 27 Feb 2005 6549 Posts Couve / Hood Honored Founder

(I have had 4 knee surgeries, 3 ACLs and and a meniscus repair.)

My main advice would be to stay away from the kiting as long as you can to let it repair proper. Don't go back to kiting just because you are feeling better and think you can handle it.

Also I'd get a good brace like a Don Joy or something similar.

lubomm · Since 15 Aug 2007 248 Posts Hood Stoked

I tore my meniscus last winter. I had meniscus surgery last summer. Dr. cut out a piece of it as he said it was not repairable. I had some gentle kite sessions a few weeks after surgery, but generally tried to stay away. I did stationary biking and gym workouts for the knee for a few months. I am back to kiting now and try to bike too. I feel some lateral instability on the knee. After a few months I would say I was at 100% for normal everyday tasks. For active sports like kiting don't think I will ever be at 100% of past performance.

Let me know if you want to know in more details my rehab practices.

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

Well, getting old sucks. I'm glad that my knee is back in decent shape. I'm fully rehabilitated as far as my activities. Injured it as described above and it's been 7 months. I'm back on it, though weaker now, it's working fine.

I guess overall I had the luck to get into surgery quickly. My rehab. consisted of lots of stationary biking and swimming laps.

I'll be sporting a soft brace that keeps my knee aligned. Doc tells me it's just psychological but it seems to help keep it stable.