Meniscus what type of cartilage

The anterior and posterior horns are populated by round chondroid cells encircled by abundant interstitial substance and branched wavy connective fibers; blood vessels are present. The outer third of the meniscus is constituted of cross bundles of connective fibers, fibrocytes and spindle-like areas of loose connective tissue with blood vessels. Tears of the meniscus, especially the medial meniscus are very common.

Isolated tears in the hylaine cartilage are unusual and these tears are usually associated with some other condition such as a fracture or large meniscus tear. Unlike meniscal tears which can be debrided and the torn portions excised, when hyaline cartilage is lost it leaves behind exposed bone which is very sensitive to pain.

Loss of articular or hyaline cartilage is also referred to as osteoarthritis. So the treatment follows this basic premise: We remove torn menisci to protect and prevent damage to the hyaline cartilage. We transplant hyaline cartilage into defects to arrest the degeneration of the joint and prevent further arthritis from developing. If arthritis and cartilage loss have already taken place and are extensive, a joint replacement operation may be indicated either partial or total.

So to review, meniscus tears are one of the most common conditions that bring patients into the office for evaluation. Patients may not remember a specific activity that precipitated the pain but rather describe a more insidious gradual onset. Many tears are caused by inconspicuous activity such as bending down to pick up and object.

Others remember a fairly sharp pain in the knee with a sudden onset. Regardless of the cause, most patients describe stiffness in the knee, pain in a fairly specific location around the tear, clicking and some have fluid collection in the joint. We generally start with an x-ray to make sure there are no other potential causes of the pain such as arthritis. In patients with mild symptoms and an otherwise normal x-ray we may try an injection of corticosteroid to relieve the inflammation prior to proceeding with an MRI.

In patients without mechanical symptoms locking and catching , about one out of three will respond well to the injection and will not need further work-up.

A number of other inflammatory conditions can mimic meniscal tears so an MRI is not always automatically ordered. In patients who fail to improve with corticosteroid injection or who have relief of pain for only a short period of time, we will usually order an MRI. This will allow us to evaluate the cartilage and ligaments around the knee and to assess the size and character of the tear.

Smaller tears can often be managed without surgery, namely with a combination of physical therapy, anti inflammatory medications and occasionally, corticosteroid injection. Larger tears may be associated with mechanical clunking or locking in the joint as the fragment of cartilage binds inside the joint and prevents it from moving properly.

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Scand J Med Sci Sports. It may help you walk or perform daily activities. Surgery is usually the best option for treating the meniscus. Dealing with joint pain can cause major disruptions to your day. Sign up and learn how to better take care of your body. Click below and just hit send! The basic science of human knee menisci: structure, composition, and function. Sports Health. Are all cartilage problems the same? Frobell RB. Change in cartilage thickness, posttraumatic bone marrow lesions, and joint fluid volumes after acute ACL disruption: a two-year prospective MRI study of sixty-one subjects.

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