Mrs The Spider has a meniscal tear and needs knee surgery.

Anyone had this?
How was the procedure?
How long did it take to recover?
Were you off work?
Did it work?

She’s been in a lot of pain for nearly a year that they were trying to shift with physio. She eventually got an MRI at the weekend and they found a meniscal tear.

Mrs Dubs has had one.

Day surgery at private hospital (health coverage through work)
Depends – do your exercises, they encourage movement asap, I think she was back to hockey training after a couple of months
For a week or so, but she’s a PE teacher
Yes

Mate had an operation for this, he was off running for a couple of months. Right now he’s busy doing the Tor des Geants (330km trail race…) so I’d say that’s a “yes” to the last question 🙂

I had it about 3/4 years ago. Day surgery, was walking around the room a couple of hours after the surgery, and back to work after the weekend.
I was back to playing badminton and running in about 4/5 months, having followed the physio pretty carefully, so it definitely works…

Had mine done February this year, was walking straight away and felt a fraud when they gave me crutches in the hospital. I had 4 weeks off work because of my physical job but built up distance walking and biking gradually. It aches occasionally, especially Sunday morning when it was 7° in bib shorts. I used to limp, I don’t now.

It all sounds good. She’s got a Karate Grading due in the next couple of weeks and the training was giving her massive grief. Hopefully she’ll be whacking the pads again within a couple of months!

Just come home from a repair on my Lateral Miniscus.

Seems to be going ok but quite painful as they have repaired the cartilage and done a ‘microfracture’ which just means making the bone bleed so the repair heals as far as I know.

Having been my third such operation I can tell you that it doesn’t always go smoothly. This time I’m in a brace for 4 weeks and only able to load bare with the leg locked out straight to avoid damaging the repair. Basically if you listen to exactly what they tell you to do and make sure it’s all explained (wasn’t the last twice for me) then it will all come out fine.

Looking at around 2 months off work. Had it done through Bupa so was a pretty good experience. Was basically in and done within two hours but had to stay overnight as I wasn’t too good with the anaesthetic. Feel free to PM if you want to know any more. They even sent me a DVD of the operation haha.

3 years ago & still causes me trouble now. Left with a weak fragile knee very easily damaged if I land on it at a funny angle. But its better than it was pre operation.

Are you hoping to get the op on the NHS or will you be going private? I have a lateral tear in the meniscus in my right knee with an associated cyst which has blown up a few times with synovial fluid. NHS seem to have tightened up on funding such ops unless the injury meets certain conditions and won’t fund an op on my knee at the moment and referred me for physio. They claim that studies have shown that such ops have limited long term effect (well that’s the excuse they gave me). Had a similar op on same knee about 20 years ago and was out and about in a few weeks.

Had 2 ops about 8 years ago. After 1st op went back to work too early and perhaps didn’t do the physio as well as I should have, which meant needing a 2nd op. Since then (and after doing the physio absolutely 100%) knee has been absolutely fine – played football for a couple of years after, can ride a bike and all was good – until recently.
Apparently after approx 10 years it can get a bit arthritic, and now knee aches most of the time (except on a bike). Long periods of sitting at a desk/in a car etc really make it uncomfortable. I should go and get it “scraped” but I’m feeling relatively bike fit at the mo and want to see the rest of summer out before being laid up again!

SHe has been under NHS physio for 10 months with no improvement. They sent her for the MRI and called today saying that she should hear about surgery in the next 2 weeks. Hopefully that means they will do it.

If not I’d gladly pay as it making her life a misery.

Had mine done on April 6th this year. 1st question I asked the physio was, ‘how long before I can sit on the bike & just turn the pedals on a turbo trainer?’ When she said to give it 4 weeks at least my face mustv’e been a picture cos she then said, ‘well 3 weeks at the very least!
I thought mine would’ve got better sooner as It took a good 12-15 weeks to become pain free. I also had 4 weeks off work (I’m jumping in & out of minibuses all day)
Not everyone’s the same & some peoples ops are more complicated than others, mine was pretty bad according to the sturgeon, so it varies a lot.

Like “daveylad”, I have a weak left knee that flares up in the medial area. Would be interested to hear or see some strengthening and rehab exercises , routines, thanks in advance .

I had an arthroscopy on 16th August. I had a bucket handle tear of one meniscus repaired, and the other one trimmed. I started on the stationary bike this week and suffered no pain whilst pedalling, but Im still getting a fair bit of pain when walking and climbing stairs. I’ve been signed off for 6 weeks but I wont be going back to work for a fair while after that.

I had it done about 10 years ago. Also arthroscopic and though I was told some patients can walk out of the hospital I had a lot of fluid on the knee which took some draining and it was about two weeks before I could bend the knee at all. In all it took about three months before my leg was up to the same strength as it was before. I was also encouraged to ride my bike as soon as I could. Started on the turbo with zero resistance after two weeks and worked on from there. Not had any problems with the knee since then * touches wood*

I have just had my arthroscopy on Thursday – third one in six years on the same knee. Still a bit painful and stiff. Cannot drive for at least two weeks, I’ve been hobbling around (I think I’ve over done it). I went through the NHS Patient Choice and had the surgery done n a private hospital in Sheffield It’s taken a year to get to this stage as NHS make you jump through numerous hoops – physio, steroid injections. As I’m off over Xmas so no time off work

My wife is still waiting after 5 cancelations. Latest date is Jan 8th.

The incompetence of the booking team has been spectacular. With special mention to being given two dates when the surgeon was on holiday and one date when the surgery list wasn’t published correctly so Mrs Spider and another patient were omitted. The genius that did this is no longer working for the surgeon as she walked out after 3 weeks because he is “not an easy man to work for”.

****ing useless.

Sounds like a shit surgeons secretary Harry!

@harry

That sounds like my dad who missed an appointment for operation twice:
– First time as the letter had wrong date on
– second letter confirmed the correct date and stated he needed to do nothing as he had already had pre-op meeting. He turned up on appointed day to find be should have called to confirm so they had cancelled it. A look at the letter confirmed he had the wrong letter, but he ‘should have known’ to call apparently.
Poor nurse that copped his frustration second time…
Third time lucky was in November – but what a waste of precious NHS resources.

Finally got it done yesterday. It couldn’t be repaired, but 90% of the damaged tissue was removed.

The clinical staff were great, but the admin has been an absolute shambles.

Good luck with the recovery Mrs HTS.

Take it easy, and when you think you are ready to get back on the exercise…..give it another week.

And do the exercises.

I’m 18 months in to a medial tear with no op option. Cycling is fine, running not.

She’s signed off work for 3 weeks and banned from Karate until April.

UPDATE:

Almost 5 weeks since surgery and my wife is still experiencing a lot of pain. Not necessarily in the knee, but all down the lower leg.

Did anyone else suffer this?

8 Weeks today. Still in pain.

Was anyone else still suffering at this stage?

No pain as such by that stage. Only ouch moments were if I jarred my knee stepping heavily or twisting it as I changed direction whilst walking. I was back driving and riding (gently after building up on the turbo trainer) by 2 months.

8 Weeks today. Still in pain.

Sorry to hear this mate, but 8 weeks sounds like there is something else going on and personally I’d be on the phone for a follow-up. Good luck to MrsSpider

Anyone using a brace like a POD K8 or CTI post injury?

My surgeon was against braces- he reckoned use was the best form of rehabilitation as it got the muscles working and blood flowing.