The meniscus biomechanics is one of the hottest areas in medical research. Finite element analysis(FEA) provides a new method for biomechanical studies. Using the FEA, the stress force and strain distribution characteristics of the normal meniscus can be analysed by establishing the finite element model of the meniscus and utilizing finite element softwares. In addition, the finite simulation of the meniscus tears, meniscectomy, and knee tissue injury can assess the changes of meniscus biomechanical properties. These research results provide theoretical basis of biomechanics to prevent and treat knee joint injuries. However, the finite element analysis method has its limitations, future research will be aimed at establishing high quality finite element models, making the models offer more authentic simulations of the meniscus anatomy, and ensuring the FEA could be applied to research a variety of knee injuries.
Biomechanical Phenomena ; Finite Element Analysis ; Humans ; Knee Injuries ; Menisci, Tibial ; Meniscus ; Models, Biological ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate clinical efficacy of arthroscopic with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in treating meniscus injury. METHODS: From January 2015 to December 2019, clinical control study on repair meniscus injury by arthroscopic with PRP between arthroscopic were searched by PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane library, Chinese Journal Full-text Database, Wanfang and VIP database. Literature screening, data extraction and quality evaluation according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Visual analogue scale(VAS) of knee joint and Lysholm score at 1, 6 and 12 months after opertaion between two groups were compared, and Western Ontario and McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) at 3, 6 and 12 months after opertaion between twogroups were also compared. RESULTS: Totally 9 literatures and 329 patients with meniscal injuries were screened, include 146 patients treated by arthroscopic with PRP and 183 patients treated by arthroscopic. There were no statistical differences in VAS between two groups at 1, 6 and 12 months after opertaion. There were differences in Lysholm score at 1 and 6 months after operation between two groups [ CONCLUSION Arthroscopic with PRP for repair meniscus injury has short term efficacy of knee function and delay arthritis, while has similar effect in long term clinical efficacy and relieve pain.
Arthroscopy ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; Meniscus ; Osteoarthritis, Knee ; Platelet-Rich Plasma ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries/surgery* ; Treatment Outcome

Adult ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the methods and effects of arthroscopic operation in aged patients with meniscal injury. METHODS: From January 2014 to June 2018, 86 elderly patients with meniscal injury met the inclusion criteria, including 35 males and 51 females, aged 60 to 76 years old, with an average age of 63.7 years old, 32 patients with definite trauma and 54 without definite trauma. Arthroscopic partial meniscectomy was performed in 75 cases, partial meniscectomy and anterior angle repair in 2 cases, partial meniscectomy and body repair in 2 cases, and partial meniscectomy and repair in 7 cases of horizontal delamination rupture of posterior horn; 28 patients with mild joint degeneration went through drilling decompression of intercond-ylar fossa. Lysholm score and IKDC score were used to evaluate knee joint function and visual analogue scale(VAS) was used to evaluate pain. RESULTS: All patients were successfully operated under arthroscope. The follow-up period ranged from 6 to 36 months, with an average of 15 months. The Lysholm score of knee joint increased from preoperative 51.26±12.00 to final follow-up 81.20±4.89 points (=22.07, <0.001); IKDC scores increased from preoperative 48.05±10.68 to final follow-up 76.97±6.26(=23.04, <0.001); and the VAS decreased from preoperative 3.37±0.84 to final follow-up 0.57±0.62(=36.27, <0.001). Two patients with non-traumatic degenerative medial meniscus injury with medial osteoarthritis had no significant improvement after 1 year follow-up, so underwent total knee arthroplasty. CONCLUSIONS In elderly patients with knee meniscus injury, arthroscopic partial meniscectomy, or partial meniscectomy and repair can achieve satisfying clinical results. If the injuried joint is accompanied with mild degeneration, drilling hole decompression of intercondylar fossa should be performed at the same time.
Aged ; Arthroscopy ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Knee Injuries ; Male ; Menisci, Tibial ; Meniscus ; Middle Aged ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo explore the clinical efficacy of the arthroscopic Mender II stapler for the treatment of patients with meniscus anterior horn injury needing meniscal suture repair.

METHODSAmong 47 patients with meniscus anterior horn injury, 29 patients were male and 18 patients were female, ranging in age from 12 to 31 years old, with a mean age of (20.53± 4.12) years old. The duration of disease ranged from 3 to 35 days, and the average duration was (12.43±5.74) days. The Mender II stapler was used to carry out arthroscopic suture from outside to inside. The Lysholm knee scoring system was used to evaluate and analyze preoperative and postoperative symptoms, such as pain, limping embolism and so on.

RESULTSForty-six patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 12 to 48 months, with a mean of (20.53±4.12) years. The incision healed at the first stage without important vessels and nerves injuries. The symptoms of the locked knee joint disappeared, and symptoms such as pain, limp, swelling and limitation of activity improved. The Lysholm score increased from preoperative 52.33±7.31 to postoperative 86.74±6.92.

CONCLUSIONUsing Mender II stapler to treat patients with meniscus anterior horn injury who were treated with arthroscopic suture from outside to inside is effective to improve symptoms, and to obtain good short-term results.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Arthroscopy ; methods ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Menisci, Tibial ; surgery ; Suture Techniques ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries

Meniscal injury is one of the most common injuries to the knee. The menisci are important for normal knee function. And loss of a meniscus increases the risk of subsequent development of degenerative changes in the knee. Now there are different techniques available for meniscal injury. These techniques include expectant treatment, meniscectomy, meniscal repair, meniscal replacement, and meniscal tissue engineering. Expectant treatment is the appropriate treatment for minor tears of the menisci. Meniscectomy being favored at the beginning is now obsolete. Meniscus repair has become a standard procedure. Meniscal replacement and tissue engineering are used to deal with considerable meniscal injuries. The purpose of this paper is to provide current knowledge regarding the anatomy and function of the menisci, incidence, aetiology, symptoms, signs, investigations and treatments of meniscal injury.
Animals ; Humans ; Knee Injuries ; surgery ; Menisci, Tibial ; anatomy & histology ; physiology ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries ; Tissue Engineering

BACKGROUNDDiscoid lateral meniscus of the knee is common in Chinese population. There has been considerable debate about the best treatment for discoid lateral meniscus tears. The purpose of this study was to observe the effect of arthroscopic meniscectomy for the treatment of discoid lateral meniscus tears.

METHODSBetween July 1999 and December 2004, arthroscopic meniscectomy was performed on 62 menisci of 57 patients with discoid lateral meniscus tears (52 unilateral, 5 bilateral). 41 menisci were "complete discoid meniscus", 21 "incomplete". According to the extent of the meniscus tears, partial meniscectomy was performed on 52 knees, total meniscectomy on 7 knees, and partial meniscectomy combined with meniscus suture on 3 knees through an arthroscope. After the operations, early rehabilitation training programs, including straight-leg-raising and range-of-motion exercises, were carried out. 51 patients were followed up for 1 year 2 months to 6 years 5 months (mean, 3 years 3 months), 6 patients were lost. Lysholm-II scoring system was used to assess the function of the knee joints before the operation and during the follow-up.

RESULTSThe operations on all the 62 knees were successful without complications. The patients could walk normally after completing the 2-week postoperation rehabilitation program. After 3 - 4 weeks they could lead a normal life and participate in a moderate amount of sports or other physical activities. The mean Lysholm-II score was 89 (60 - 100) during the follow-up, which was significantly higher than that before the operation (50, range 34 - 74; P < 0.01). 88% of the patients achieved excellent or good clinical results.

CONCLUSIONSArthroscopic meniscectomy is an alternative for treatment of discoid lateral meniscus tears with minimal traumatic effects. It can achieve early mobilization and a low complication rate, as well as the preservation of the meniscus structure and functions to the largest extent. In combination with proper rehabilitation training, the operation can lead to good or excellent results.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Arthroscopy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Menisci, Tibial ; surgery ; Middle Aged ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries

OBJECTIVEYoga is becoming more and more popular in the female society while the concomitant sports injury is seldom mentioned. Many clinicians have noted that yoga may result in knee problems, which though requires more researches to corroborate. This investigation was conducted to ascertain the relationship between yoga and meniscus injury as well as the extent of impairment according to variant yoga practice periods.

METHODSTotally 819 women aged 20-49 years who practiced yoga or other popular sports including badminton, jogging, climbing hills, etc for at least one hour per day were selected to participate in this research. These subjects were required to complete a questionnaire and receive relevant physical examination. Magnetic resonance (MR) scan of the knee was recommended for the suspicious subjects for ultimate diagnosis. The subject with abnormal meniscus MR signals was defined as a case and matched with two controls in terms of age and body mass index (BMI). Altogether there were 273 cases and 546 controls. The nested case-control model was adopted to assess the risk of meniscus injury between variant exposures in practicing yoga and several other popular sports. Moreover, the 181 yoga subjects were subdivided into three groups according to different exercise durations, followed by further analysis with the variables of age, BMI and Lysholm score.

RESULTSYoga was found associated with a higher risk (P equal to 0.008, OR equal to 1.621) of meniscus injury compared with badminton, jogging and climbing hills. The three yoga subgroups showed statistical difference between each other in terms of Lysholm score (P equal to 0.027) and BMI (P equal to 0.003). The subjects with longer-term yoga practice had lighter weight but lower Lysholm scores.

CONCLUSIONSYoga perhaps exerts destructive impact on the meniscus for Chinese women, yet it needs further verifications. Furthermore, the female yoga players with longer exercise duration are more susceptible to meniscus injury though they can become leaner.

Body Mass Index ; Female ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; Motor Activity ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries ; Yoga

Adult ; Humans ; Male ; Tibial Fractures ; complications ; surgery ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries ; etiology ; surgery

Popliteal meniscal fiber bundle injury is relatively infrequent in clinic, which can be either isolated or associated with anterior cruciate ligament rupture, lateral meniscus injury and so on. Popliteal meniscal fiber bundle injury often leads to instability of lateral meniscus. Because of the lack of specific symptoms and signs of injury, the imaging changes are subtle, and it is easy to miss diagnosis and misdiagnosis in clinical. Timely diagnosis and treatment are essential to prevent the chronic pain and instability of the knee joint. This paper summarizes the anatomical characteristics, biomechanics, injury mechanism, diagnostic points and surgical treatment of the popliteal meniscus fiber bundle injury, in order to guide the diagnosis and treatment of the injury of the popliteal meniscus fiber bundle in the clinical work.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries ; Humans ; Knee Injuries ; Knee Joint ; Menisci, Tibial ; Tibial Meniscus Injuries ; diagnosis