Your knees are not just one of the hardest-working parts of your body, they’re also your biggest joints. These critical synovial hinge joints bear your body’s weight when moving, including up to five times that weight when running. To stabilize, absorb shock, and keep this joint functioning correctly, the bones work with your ligaments and your meniscus.
The bones of your knee joint are lined with the meniscus, and injuries in this area can make even standing upright more difficult. Meniscal tears happen most often in this part of the knee, and to make sure you get it treated, you should know the symptoms. Let’s take a closer look at how this cartilage works in your legs, why it gets injured, and what signs to look for.
To treat tears in your meniscus or manage a variety of other joint issues, Dr. David Dickerson and the Performance Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine team are here to help the residents of Shrewsbury, Toms River, and Wall Township, New Jersey.
Your knees have two menisci, the medial and lateral, which have two areas: a white zone and a red zone. Only the red zone has blood running through it, meaning the white zone may need surgery if damaged, as it doesn’t heal on its own. Both are C-shaped cartilages resting on the top of your tibias. Together, they perform several vital tasks for your knees:
While physical activity helps keep your joints healthy, moving in specific motions can be damaging to your knees.
Sudden motions resulting from your knees twisting while your feet are planted are frequently the cause of tears in your meniscus, and this is common in the intense physical actions of several sports, including soccer, basketball, and football.
Other factors that lead to these tears include trauma from fall injuries or accidents, and the degenerative effects of aging on your knees.
When it happens, you’ll experience issues like:
Since your meniscus is key to the knee being stable, tears in the cartilage will cause problems with basic things on your feet, and you might think your knees will give out as you’re walking.
The inflammation that comes with joint injuries will make moving the knees harder as the condition progresses.
Inflammation also causes swelling, a definite indication of a problem that needs addressing.
How much pain you deal with depends on the severity of the tear and how much pressure you put on the knee after the tear.
The combination of these issues makes trying to fully extend or bend the knee harder to do, and you’re likely to experience more pain as you try to force the joint, so take it easy.
Within a few days, you’ll have more problems trying to put weight on it. If not appropriately treated, wear and tear can develop faster, leading to arthritis.
A torn meniscus will make life more difficult when on your feet, so if you have these symptoms or are dealing with other joint problems, call 732-691-4898 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Dickerson and the Performance Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine team today.
