Knee problems

[Wyatt G]

Hey guys my first post but i have been a lurker for a while...I had arthoscopic surgery on my meniscus in late january of this year but lately ive been having a lot of pain....so i went to the doctor last wednsday and he thinks that i have torn my meniscus (first was a discoid meniscus) today i am getting an mri of it to comform if it is what he thinks and i will find out the 20th from him....but what im wondering is ive heard alot of bad things about people having second surgeries...im only 16 and i dont want to have arthritis set in early in my life...but at the moment i cant even run but if i have surgery it will screw up my hunting season to where i probly wont be able to hunt at all...if it is a torn meniscus do you guys think i should have the surgery or not. Sorry for the long post

 

[JohnCushman]

Welcome aboard. I've had 4 scopes since being wounded in Iraq. I just saw the ortho doctor and he confirmed my medial meniscus is torn, plus I have a spot with bone on bone contact. He doesn't think he can repair it permanently with surgery, as this is the second tear of the same one, so as of now he is opting out of surgery. I told him of my hunting plans for the fall and how vicodin only does so much for the pain, so he injected my knee with a pain reliever/steroid shot for now. So far it's been wonderful. We'll see if it gets me through archery elk season. So, in my opinion, put off surgery if he calls for it. You're already in pain now, so you can live with it a bit more to get through hunting season if you can convince him to inject you.

 

[EasternMTHunter]

Unfortunately, once you have surgery the risk for arthritis goes way up. Most of the time I start my patients in physical therapy and on oral NSAIDs (Ibuprofen or Naproxen) and prednisone. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. A cortisone injection would be the next step and is also fairly successful. Surgery should always be the last step unless it is emergent as once it is removed there is no putting it back. Hope things go well for you.

 

[Wyatt G]

John thank you for your service to our country.....i did get an cordisone injection a few weeks ago and it made the pain alot worse and made my whole leg swell up for a few days....but i think your right on holding off on the surgery but we'll just have to see what he see's on the mri...this is what my left leg looked like two days after the injection sorry for the upside down pic

 

[kenton]

I blew out my knee in high school bball (acl, mcl, meniscus). I would say the thing I learned most from my situation is to do what it takes to get healthy now. I would take the upcoming hunting season completely out of it. Believe me, I know every hunting season is a pure gift from above but at 16 years old, you should have many more to look forward too. Truth is your probably never going to be 100% pain free but get as close as you can now and the elk or deer will still be there when you get the green light. Trust the doc and rehab like a mad man. Good luck.

 

[ccc23454]

if your only 16 get things fixed now when your body is quicker to repair itself or you will be limping and moving slowly like the rest of us when you get more experienced (older). reducing this seasons hunting might be best for improving all the hunting seasons ahead of you.

 

[L. I. Yankee]

I have blown out both of my knees...acl,medial collateral ligament,miniscus. I have one totally reconstructed,tore it up again so both have everything torn. 6 surgeries later I'm done.I will not have another surgery till I can't walk. I have had one cortisone injection in each and I'm as good as can expect. If you could live with the pain live with it. Once they open you up your prone to arthritis and tearing it again.....I still can hunt out west granted I'm not in my 20"s but I can still climb pretty good.....good luck.....

 

[DaveHawk]

I've had my left knee scoped 3 times and rt twice. For the past 10 years I've been getting cortisone shots. I got one last week in my left knee and the doc ask me if I am ready for a replacement. Time to make a discussion.
Over the years I took 3000 mils of Vitamin C every day to eat the calcium deposits which held off arthritis.

 

[Ben Long]

Wyatt I am in no position to give you advice. That's between you, your folks and your doc. But I will tell you I had my knee scoped when I was 16 to remove some floating bone fragments (I had chipped the knee cap hunting elk). My knee hasn't given me any serious trouble in the 30 years since. Take care of it now and I hope your knees give you long years of service.

 

[Wyatt G]

The main thing im worried about with the surgery is with 50% of my meniscus already gone and with more being taken out im worried about the chance of getting arthritis this early in my life

 

[HSi-ESi]

I second that the decision is between you, your folks and you doc. Just wanted to share my experience.

I had a knee scoped at 20 (football related injury). We thought it was torn meniscus, but when the surgeon got in it was torn tissue. My knee's have actually gotten better with time.

Good luck to you. I hope that it all turns out well. Therapy is pretty fast now - especially at your age. I was playing pickup basketball 6 days after mine (against Dr's orders....).

 

[JCW]

One thing I've learned as was mentioned before. If there is a procedure to fix the issue now, go for it. I blew my ACL when I was 22 and waited 6 years to fix it. After surgery and PT 6 months later I was kicking myself for not getting it done sooner as I was favoring it for that entire 6 years. I have arthritis in my knee as a result of waiting, plus my meniscus got all chewed up and they had to take out a good portion of it. In the end I have some minor aches and pains, but can get around a lot better than before surgery. My 2 cents.

 

[LCH]

Wyatt,

I'm no medical professional, but I believe if it were me I'd go ahead and get it fixed now. As others have said, you still have many more hunting seasons left you'll want to be in the best possible shape for.

BTW - I'm a Wyatt G. also (Guthrie)

 

[Elkmagnet]

Whatever you choose. good luck may you recover fully.

I bet cushman is a tuff sob!

 

[JohnCushman]

Whatever you choose. good luck may you recover fully.

I bet cushman is a tuff sob!

Actually...to be quite honest...my knee and back and weight kept me from hunting on the HT hunt. It was, and still is, brutally embarrassing. Now that I finally know what is wrong with my knee, and have somewhat of a prognosis, it's time for me to stop being a bitch about it and suck it up and get it done. Haji almost killed me, and if I keep going like I am, he might as well have done it. I have started the process to get bariatric surgery to get the weight off, along with the injections in my knee. One day I will be hardcore again, until then, I'll be old and slow and broken on the mountain, but I will be CSEH

 

[Guest member 25165]

I've had two scopes on my left knee before the age of 19. Best decision I've ever had. I run, lift weights, climb, bike...the whole works and my knee feels great. If you have a tear, get it fixed.
BTW, I am 39 now and I am stronger now than when I was at the time of injury.

 

[DaveHawk]

John Doc said I can have a Parcel replacement or a full. If you get the choice go for the full. Everyone I've talked to has had problems with the parcel. Best of luck what ever you decided.

 

[MichiganMan]

Knee

If they tell you that you cant do more damage than is already there then use the heck out of it. Also consider getting morphine injections into your knee. It will relieve the pain and make you able to do the activities you enjoyed previously. I am a physician assistant and currently work with an orthopaedic surgeon that recommends them regularly with great results. If a new knee is your only other option then use the current one til it is all used up.

 

[Wyatt G]

Hey guys i went to a new doc yesterday and had him look at my mri(he is the doc for the arkansas razorbacks and our local minor league baseball team) and he said that it was torn and he wants to do a scope...i also had some x-rays done on my back because i got in a fender bender a few days ago...i thought that i was just really sore but i have a compression fracture and that takes about 8-10 weeks to heal so since im going to be down for a while im going to go ahead and do the scope so i can get it over with...thank you guys for your opinions and good luck on the mountain

 

[Huntfit]

Good luck, at your age you should make a great recovery.