Knee surgery for cartilage damage does not benefit patients, study suggests
8 hours ago
- #orthopedic-surgery
- #medical-reversal
- #meniscus-tear
- A 10-year study found that partial meniscectomy, a common knee surgery for meniscus tears, does not benefit patients and may lead to worse outcomes compared to sham surgery.
- Patients who underwent the surgery showed poorer knee function, more pain, greater progression of osteoarthritis, and a higher likelihood of needing further knee surgery over 10 years.
- Meniscus tears are often found incidentally in healthy people without symptoms, and evidence suggests many MRI findings are unrelated to knee issues, questioning the necessity of surgery.
- Clinical guidelines have shifted to recommend waiting 6 months for symptoms to resolve with physiotherapy before considering surgery, reducing surgery rates from about 75% to 25% in some practices.
- While some patient subsets, such as those with mechanical catching sensations, may still benefit, surgery is now advised as a last resort due to unpredictable pain relief and potential harm.